Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality
by destructve
Summary: Zelgadiss and the gang are off to find a cure for his condition. What else is new? But an attempt to turn this into a plausible Lina x Amelia fanfic turns this into an epic nightmare. Naughty situations further on in the fanfic. Mature audiences only!
1. Chapter 1

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Chapter 1 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters (Eventually) and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

Originally as I was writing this it was set in some miscellaneous time after TRY however with Revolution being currently aired now there is no hard and fast location to set this. So now it is being somewhat ambiguously set since I don't know how Revolution will end. While writing this I read a lot of the novels so the characters might seem a little _off_ with respect to the anime. Then again you can just blame it on me being a crappy writer… _heh_… your choice.

*****************(Classic Snowflake Openings Rock!)*****************

.... It was just too hot....

Trudging along Lina wiped her brow while shakily shambling along the dusty road. She was surrounded on all sides by nothing... scrub grass, tumbleweeds, and some brittle trees lacking leaves. It was one step shy of a desert. Lina's normal lively locks of hair had long since become weighed down from sweat and dust and as a result they hung heavily in Lina's vision. Some of the locks of hair were so swamped they stuck entirely to her face and headband. Despite the wheather she continued on, sweat bleeding through her clothing along her spine, between her breasts, and especially under her arms. "It's soooo hot..." She wined to anyone willing to sympathize, running her hands disgustedly over her somewhat stripped-down outfit. She was lacking her usual mantle, gloves, and cape. Sighing she went back to picking her finger nails as she walked, noting the distinctly different shade her upper arm had acquired in the last few days compared to her hand which had been gloved till that day.

Gourry and Zelgadiss were traveling side by side just a few paces behind her, but even their normal 'tough guy' demeanor was breaking down from the never-ending afternoon sun. Gourry was taking the heat especially bad, not willing to sacrifice his armor or his workload; he was drenched in sweat. Each step was accompanied by a squish as the perspiration that had traveled down his body accumulated in his leather boots, their water-tightness working against its original intention.

"This is just terrible..." Zelgadiss mumbled to Gourry.

"What's terrible..?"

Zelgadiss sighed and swallowed dryly, desperately hoping to get some water soon, "We haven't had any water since we left this morning.... and it's been so hot for so long now-- I have to wonder if something is wrong."

"Wrong?" Gourry started questioningly.

Zelgadiss continued, "Like, maybe some dark lord somewhere is watching us and getting his kicks from seeing us break down like this..."

Gourry thought for a second, "It's hot because it's hot, there doesn't have to be a reason for it..." The simple logic was almost too much for Zel causing him to grit his teeth, the heat was making his temper short, especially because his statement had been a fleeting attempt at levity. But it was too hot to do anything so they continued on in silence.

"Whaa!" Lina teetered unsteadily after stumbling over her own feet. She was thankful to have avoided falling on her face, but held still a moment to fully regain her balance. "This sucks!" She kicked up some dirt making a mini dust cloud. There was no relief from the heat. When the days had first started to get hot Zelgadiss had used a weakened version of the wind barrier to cool everyone down, but it had also proved to be a most effective desiccant. Chapped lips were the immediate result but eventually their eyes began to stick shut and breathing along with swallowing became harder. Not to mention the sandblast to the face. So they opted to tough it out, but Lina felt that she was finally beat.

Without another word Lina dropped to the ground on her butt, and reached into a pouch she was carrying over her shoulder she pulled out a map. "That's it.. I need a vacation… I quit…" Meanwhile Gourry and Zelgadiss caught up and stood around Lina, looking down to see her plotting. Normally Lina would have been upset at the invasion of personal space, but at the moment they were blocking 80% of the sun and Lina could live with that sort of trade off. Tracing her finger along the map Lina finally exclaimed, "Ah hah!" She turned up toward her compatriots, "We're in luck! If we just make a little detour here…" Without prompting Lina continued, "There's a little resort town just up in the hills to the west of us, it's right on a lake, it'll be so much cooler!" Enthusiastic for the moment Lina made a wide overhead gesture, "Come on, we need a break don't we!?" In response Gourry sat down and pulled off one of his boots, dumping out a significant quantity of sweat before wiggling his now webbed toes.

Gourry looked up at Lina, smiling back at her, "Yeah... that sounds like fun." Zelgadiss nodded, despite his want to continue their quest for his cure he really did feel like they needed a break. Finally Lina turned her head and body further facing the last party member whose vote was yet to be cast.

"What do you think Amelia-- Actually.... you don't look so good."

Amelia had just caught up to the group despite the fact they had been stopped in the road by Lina's antics. She was completely flush, her whole outfit was soaked and Lina had to wonder what possessed her not to give up just a little bit of her attire to fight the heat. Taking in her condition further though the group went silent.

Zelgadiss was first to act, "Amelia?" He quickly made his way over to her as Lina started to stand and Gourry struggled to get his foot back in his wet boot. When both their attention was focused back on Amelia, Zelgadiss was pulling her eyelid down and looking her over. Without delay, Gourry and Lina both walked to Zelgadiss and Amelia but it wasn't until they were within arms reach that they could make out Amelia's raspy, weak voice. Lina reached out and wiped Amelia's hair out of her eyes and wiped some of the sweat off her face.

Looking at her eyes it was obvious, "Amelia, why didn't you say anything, you should have never let your heat stroke get this bad...." On the verge of passing out Amelia nodded, but the normal life in her actions was gone, her face was taught, she was teetering, ready to collapse.

"Zelgadiss, can you carry Amelia?" Zelgadiss nodded and made an affirmative noise, putting Amelia over his shoulder with no protest from her until there was a slight sizzling sound, the stones covering Zelgadiss' body superheated from the sun evaporating Amelia's sweat. Hearing her struggle for breath and from the heat he changed her position so she was in his arms, "Let's find some cover and get out of this sun." But even with renewed purpose, everyone was listless in their actions. Lina licked her lips, her tongue relinquishing the tiny bit of moisture it possessed to help alleviate the pain coming from the miniature fissures developing in her abused lips. The three of them on their feet made it step-by-step, eventually coming to a small grove of trees. Completely dead, they were still fairly tall and wide. As such the trunks provided enough cover from the sun to make the area near them a few degrees cooler. Taking a deep breath Zelgadiss laid Amelia on the ground in the shadow of the trees before removing his cape and non-essential clothing.

However, over the last few days the definition of non-essential clothing had changed. Whereas previously Zelgadiss would have found himself blushing if he caught a glimpse of Lina wandering around in in just a chest wrap, panties, and only covered by a narrow piece of fabric not quite coming to her knees, it had quickly become commonplace as the temperature increased daily. He too had found new levels of modesty, unable to sleep with a shirt on, he took it off as soon as everyone broke for camp and Gourry did likewise. Amelia was the slowest to adjust in the group. Her sense of modesty prevented her from being comfortable, prevented her from looking out for her own well being. Slowly Zelgadiss started to move in on Amelia, determined to remove some of her clothing, at least until she cooled off. Thankfully for him, Lina stepped in, "I'll take care of it Zel..." Relieved Zelgadiss took a few steps back and left Lina to strip down Amelia.

Squatting down, Lina hovered over Amelia and started to undo the broach around her neck but Amelia feebly batted her hand away. "Amelia..." Lina growled out, Amelia's condition not allowing Lina to accept an excuse of modesty. She glared at Amelia who was likely trying to do the same back, but the fire was gone, her pupils were dilated and Lina felt all more the inclined to get Amelia buck naked if she had to. Though defiant, there was no more protesting as Lina undid the clap around Amelia's neck. She was forced to handle it quickly by the edges, the heat the metal had accumulated through the day was enough to make handling the trinket akin to grabbing a heated skillet. Likewise she nearly burned herself when she removed Amelia's broach just letting it drop to the ground. She then grasped the collar of Amelia's shirt around her neck, tugging it upward and onto her chin. There was no help from Amelia, passive resistance forcing Lina to put more work into it. Lina grunted from the effort and stood up slightly, bent over Amelia. She tugged on Amelia's shirt as a farmer would struggle with a stubborn mule. Eventually though she got it up and over Amelia's head and after manually pulling Amelia's arms up, it finally came free of Amelia's body.

Lina fell onto her rump. Lacking the strength to get back up, she instead scooted herself over to Amelia on her butt. Amelia's chest was covered in sweat, and her shirt had been as soaked as thoroughly as could result from any bucket of water. Swallowing hard Lina couldn't help but notice that Amelia's profuse sweating had changed her normally pristine white undergarments nearly transparent. Quickly turning Lina verified that Gourry and Zelgadiss were too far away to see anything before looking around nearby for something that she could use to cover her, at least enough for 'Little Miss Modest' to keep her decency if one of the guys decided to check up on her. Inspiration came quickly and Lina removed her headband and laid it over Amelia's nipples, effectively censoring her. She noticed that Amelia had lifted her head up some and smiled thinly at Lina, evidently happy with her ingenuity. Lina laughed and Amelia smiled a little wider before letting her head drop down to the ground again lightly.

Bracing herself in advance this time, Lina undid the strings holding Amelia's pants up and hooked her fingers inside the band. The battle was less intense than the shirt had been, and within the minute Amelia was pants-less. This time though Amelia was quick to censor herself, she used both of her hands to cover her crotch and Lina chuckled, "Your luck, it's probably see-through too..."

Amelia managed a sound in response but she didn't have the energy to even differentiate it between a laugh or a grunt.

"I hate to say it Amelia, but you really need to take a bath, I mean, we all do, but I didn't notice before about you..."

Amelia again lifted her head up shakily to meet with Lina's eyes, "...thanks..." Amelia forced out , but the sarcasm was heavy enough to make it through causing Lina another smile.

"Oh, so you're recovered to the point where you're capable of sarcasm, I'd better watch out..." They both smiled at each other before Lina got up and paused, "In case you were too out of it, we broke for camp a little early. Just relax and if you need anything we'll be over there." Lina stopped before adding, "I'll come back to check on you in a bit after I see if we have any water hiding somewhere."

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

And as night fell, everyone gathered around the fire. Not that it was cold, that was a luxury afforded to only true deserts. No, this place held the heat. Every night the temperature dropped but only to tolerable, not comfortable, levels. Instead they all gathered around the fire simply to scare away some of the indigenous pests they had noticed in the area. But it wasn't until the sun had been set for some time that Amelia joined the communal fire area.

"Hey everyone..." Amelia managed, sounding only slightly more like herself.

Gourry waved somewhat wildly, "Hey Amelia, feeling any better?"

Amelia nodded sheepishly, "Yeah..." She turned a little, "Thank you Zelgadiss..." Then turned again, "Thanks again Lina.."

Lina waved it off, "No problem, just glad you're feeling better Amelia." Amelia made her way between Zelgadiss and Lina at the fire, sitting down in the rough terrain, mostly sharp rocks and dark sand, regretting for a moment not wearing any kind of footwear.

With Amelia now settled in Lina decided to re-cap her plan. "Anyway, while you were recuperating we decided that we were going to make a little detour. It'll only really put us a day or so behind but it'll be worth it. Just to the west of here is a little resort town, it's right on a lake and I bet it has plenty of cushy Inn's, just so we can catch our breath and get a break from this heat."

Amelia nodded happily, enthusiasm quickly springing to life at the hope of relief, "That does sound nice.."

Lina nodded in return, "Yeah, we deserve a break for once." Lina looked Amelia up and down, she was wearing her white bra but after the sweat had dried out, it had once again become opaque, additionally she had put her pants back on. Hoping to bolster Amelia's confidence so she might dress somewhat less modestly and to avoid a repeat incident of the heat-stroke trick, Lina made a show of appraising Amelia, raising her eyebrows exaggeratedly, "You know... that's a good look on you, looks comfortable too." Amelia blushed, though it was hidden by the orange light of the fire, her demeanor made it apparent.

Meanwhile Gourry and Zelgadiss had simply lain down where they were sitting. With the rigors of the day taking their toll they just wanted to get some sleep. Without any flourish Lina pulled her own cape from her satchel and laid it out on the ground, dropping down on top of it and exhaling heavily before rolling over to face Amelia, "You should get to sleep soon Amelia, we need to head out early, as usual, to beat the heat. At least we should make it into town early enough so we won't have to spend a whole day in this furnace again." Yawning, Lina rolled away from Amelia leaving the princess to her own thoughts.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

For the first time, Amelia felt vindicated in wearing the same level of clothing that she had worn to bed. A modest white bra along with her usual pants and jewels. Being that Zelgadiss and Gourry were being especially careful not to stare too long at the soft white skin of Amelia's chest, framed by her well-developed tan, she felt less exposed than she actually was. However that didn't change how appealing her body was, as Lina noted during occasional glances at her friend. They had all set out early for the town, and by the time the sun had fully risen, Lina and her group had already put some distance between themselves and their camp site.

Despite how tired they where, despite how hungry and thirsty they were, and despite how dirty and smelly they felt, the promise of a shower and some cold water was enough to rouse them from sleep that morning without prompting. A week in such a harsh climate would deaden most anyone's spirits. However, despite the drought they had managed to keep a positive outlook, eagerly anticipating their arrival in town. So they pushed themselves more vigorously than they had been in previous days, and before the regular drudgery of the day sat in they were pleasantly surprised to find signs of civilization. Although they were along a back road the quality of the road way was dramatically improving, and off in the distance the town was coming into view.

With the return of civilization though came the return to modesty. Despite the heat and the fact that the locals were probably used to dressing in a similar fashion, Lina and her friends still felt the need to cover up before greeting the city folk. Amelia pulled her shirt over her head, feeling slightly constricted after her short bout of freedom. Likewise Gourry and Zelgadiss re-attired themselves, with Zelgadiss also forcing himself to don his usual cloak to conceal his nature. Lina though didn't care enough to put her gloves or shoulder guards back on.

Despite the _once_ better quality of the road, it was impossible to deny that the road had laid in neglect in recent years. Whereas they had previously been traveling on a well-worn dirt road, the cobble stone road they had upgraded to was missing stones left and right and although it looked better from a distance, it was hell to walk on. So, when Lina tripped a short time later it was not something unexpected. "Uhnnn!" Lina cried out as she fell, her foot stuck in one of the many holes marked by a missing stone and her hands scraped cruelly on the uneven blocks in front of her. Hissing a little as she got up, Zelgadiss and Amelia backed away to give her some room and Gourry reached out to give her a hand. She either didn't notice or intentionally denied it though and stumbled to her feet under her own power. "Damn.." She muttered looking at her scratched up hands. Lina was used to life on the road, but she wasn't used to life on the road without her gloves, her hands were delicate beneath them, truly feminine, the fairest, most fragile skin of her body.

Now they were scratched and scoured, and she had a little bit of a limp too, her ankle or knee twisted in the fall. "Damn... damn..." Brushing off her hands she winced and Gourry moved in a step showing his concern. Lina turned towards Amelia, "Amelia, could you heal me quick?"

Amelia smiled and cracked her knuckles. "Just hold still." Amelia pulled her hands up and laid them on Lina's hands. She closed her eyes and concentrated a moment. But she just held her hands there. Curious; Lina looked at Amelia's face and could see she was struggling with something.

"Amelia..?" Lina questioned.

Amelia let out a deep breath, "Hummm.. Something's wrong.."

Lina raised her eye brows, "Is it that bad..?" She questioned, experimentally opening and closing her hands.

"No, it's not that..." Gourry and Zelgadiss stepped in, there was a feeling that something unusual was happening. "It's just... I don't know... my powers feel off today.."

Lina smiled reassuringly, "It's okay, it happens, I know we've all been working on almost no food, or water.."

"Or sleep." Zelgadiss continued before Lina picked back up.

"It's a wonder we're even on our feet. When you really push yourself, something has to give, right? Once we get to town everything should be okay…" Lina paused a moment, moving the back of her hand to Amelia's forehead in a futile attempt to check for a fever despite the sweat and ambient temperature, "Are you feeling okay though?"

Amelia looked away barely, "Actually, I've been feeling kind of sick since yesterday." Lina set her face more somberly and laid a hand on Amelia's shoulder.

"Well, just a little further to the town, okay?" Amelia nodded and Lina turned to Gourry, "And you, you're going to have to carry me the rest of the way." Gourry balked at the concept.

"Carry you!" He cried out.

Lina nodded wisely, "Yup, I certainly can't walk with a bum knee." Gourry tried to get in some more defense.

"But you haven't even tried yet!" Lina looked up to him, their eyes meeting and she let her lip quiver a little.

"Do we even want to risk it Gourry?" She trailed off as she felt Gourry caving to her demands

"Well, I guess I can…"

Zelgadiss found his moment of attack, "Couldn't you just fly?" Lina grumbled and turned slowly to Zel, pausing for a moment to develop a counter.

"I could... but look at Amelia, she can't even pull off a healing spell, what if I started to fly and suddenly dropped like a rock." Zelgadiss put his hand to his chin as he thought about it, and seeing no retort Lina continued, "So, see, I should have Gourry carry me, now get to it Gourry!" There was the slightest smile on his lips as he picked up Lina in his arms and as he started taking his first steps with his new weight Amelia noticed the smallest of smiles coming to Lina as well. Smiling herself, but a little worried over her magic issues, Amelia followed the duo as Zelgadiss brought up the rear.

They hiked together for awhile, moving just to the side of the main road as they found walking in the sandy soil easier than avoiding potholes in the roadway. The sun was at the apex of the sky and all of them were feeling as tired as ever just as they finally made it to the main branch of the town. Their mood only brightened slightly. The intense heat already causing them to sweat profusely and their clothes and brows were showing it. Nonetheless the heat was slowly wearing off. With a cooler wind blowing in off the lake and in the shade of the occasional building, things were feeling marginally better. With the outskirts gone they ended up traveling down one of the outlying streets, the road was much better and the shops surrounding them were actually open and functioning, there were people, dressed in all sorts of manner, a melting pot of sorts, the town understandably having few people living there full time and being for a most part a tourist attraction.

"Ice cream!"

Amelia and Lina shouted in unison. Lina rolled out of Gourry's arms, nearly kicking him in the face as she matched Amelia in a sprint on their way to the ice cream cart on a nearby corner. Gourry stood there gaping for a minute, "Hey, I thought you were hurt!" He called out as he noticed Zelgadiss start to pick up his pace to the stand causing him to expediently navigate the same path as Lina and Amelia down an increasingly crowded street. "Hey, wait up!" Gourry shouted but his call wasn't heeded as everyone rushed foreword.

It was unlucky that they found the poor ice cream peddler during the peak of the day, the selection was limited and what he did have, he didn't have much of. Lina bought it all of course, but fortunately for the others she was in the mood to share. She even bought the piece of ice the man had used to keep his cart cool. Not caring about looks Lina took the sizeable hunk of ice, about a foot wide and put it on top of her head, locking it in place with the strap from her satchel. As Lina ate the ice cream the ice on her head melted rapidly in the heat and water from it ran in thick rivets down her hair and over her face. Her chest was soaked, as was her back. She honestly didn't care how it looked with the intense relief she was getting for the first time in days.

As Zelgadiss and Amelia shared some shrimp and seaweed flavored ice cream, everyone looked around at the city. There were people everywhere and down the street closer to the lakefront the crowd was even worse. But they were all still happy just to be out of the hellacious wasteland that surrounded the city. Lina turned toward Amelia, "Hey, could you pull out that book that lists all the hotels we can stay at for free?" Swinging a tote around, Amelia started rummaging through it.

"I thought..." Then a moment later, "Here it is!" She pulled out the little book and thumbed through the pages, it was well worn and looked to be falling apart, except for the leather cover which was holding up well and displaced the signet for the Saillune royal family.

"So, is there anything in town?" Amelia stopped flipping through the pages.

"Just give me a second Lina." She sounded slightly irritated and started flipping the pages again. "Here." Amelia looked up and pointed down the main road, "It's called Darlo's, it's probably somewhere on this road."

Lina smiled and grabbed Gourry's arm, "Okay, let's go!"

But Gourry didn't move, "You don't need me to carry you!" He said in an incredulous voice.

Lina smiled, "Well, maybe not but I enjoy it." She stuck her tongue out at him.

In turn, Gourry sighed and scratched his head, "But you're all wet." Lina looked down at herself, the ice had certainly not been long for this environment, it had almost entirely melted, the largest piece left had fallen off Lina's head as it shrunk under the strap that Lina had used to hold it in place. Looking down at herself, her red clothing colored a deep maroon from the water, her hair matted to her head and shoulders, she suddenly realized why she was so comfortable.

"Your loss." She laughed as she started working her way through the crowd and down the street.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

The Inn was beautiful, marble columns flanked the entrance with two fountains in the main entry that served to constantly cool the air. And to Lina's surprise, despite their appearance they were readily granted a room under their pretense as being emissaries of the kingdom of Saillune. Lina figured the luxurious Inn might have twenty or so rooms considering its size. They were however large rooms, lavishly furnished, each one with large open windows leading to a beautiful wide verandah to keep cool in the sweltering climate. The rooms on the second floor where Gourry, Zelgadiss, Lina, and Amelia were given rooms also had these beautiful balconies where you could go out and see all around what the town had to offer.

As was the norm, Lina and Amelia were paired off into one room with Zelgadiss and Gourry in another. Although they had some status it was still a stretch to expect four rooms in such a resort so they hadn't even tried. Besides, the rooms were plenty large as they soon found out. Each room was furnished with a huge bed, a large table complete with chairs and a chandelier, numerous thick, heavily embroidered rugs and even the rooms on the second floor had toilets. The walls were speckled with ornate candleholders and gold flake. The beautiful craftsmanship of the woodwork that hugged the border around the ceiling was astounding. Then, blanketed over everything, an incredible, almost overwhelming array of ivory and other shades of white touched off by perfectly placed golden accents.

The first impulse in the new town though was not to enjoy their ornate rooms, but instead to go out and explore. To enjoy their first touch with civilization in a while. But there was an even greater motivation to simply lie around in the shade and enjoy the breeze off the lake. As such everyone took a break until dusk before they finally got the motivation to head down to the mineral springs.

The whole area that they were in, immediately around the lake, was rich with water. It literally came out of the ground, little springs dotted the nearby countryside and in the streets there were troughs positioned frequently that collected water from under buildings and from under roads, shuttling it to its final destination in the lake. But it was by no means a hot spring, the water that flowed from the aquifer beneath the surrounding land was colder and pleasant and currently filled two pools behind the Inn. At the thought of a cool bath, Lina finally felt her motivation rise above that break even point. Rising to her feet she turned a bit and looked back down a little upset at the mess she made, a print of her body left in dust on the bedspread and water stains evident atop that. "Come on Amelia, we need baths… bad."

Amelia sat up off the floor lazily, smelling herself under her arms she wrinkled her nose initially for effect and subsequently out of disgust, "Yeah... I don't really feel like a bath though..."

Lina frowned, "Still feeling bad?" Amelia nodded.

"A little…." Lina reached down to Amelia and grabbed her hand, pulling her to her feet.

"Well, that doesn't mean you don't need a bath, I mean, I have to sleep in the same room with you ne?"

Amelia smiled back, "Yeah, you've got a point." Lina nodded her head, satisfied.

"Um hum." Then looking back at the bed she continued, "Maybe we should strip off these nasty clothes up here and give them to the front desk to get them cleaned, you know, just bum around in some robes for awhile." Again, a simple nod showed Amelia accepted the argument and stripped off her shirt, despite the bra, her breasts jiggled a bit as the bottom of the shirt cleared them. Lina bit her lip a little at the show, slightly jealous. Then tossed off her own shirt. Leaving Amelia to finish getting undressed she walked to the bathroom in just her pants and underwear, "Second floor plumbing, not bad..." She observed as she grabbed two robes from the hooks inside.

"Lina...."

Something was wrong. Without further prompting Lina turned around and jogged the few feet back to Amelia. Amelia was turned away from her, fully naked, "What is it?" Slowly turning back around to face Lina, Amelia kept her gaze fixated downward, afraid to meet her friends' eyes.

"I'm bleeding..."

/\/\||/\/\-=End of Chapter 1=-/\/\||/\/\


	2. Chapter 2

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Chapter 2 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

.com

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

This is just one chapter of a multi-chapter fanfic, reading previous chapters is necessary to understand what is going on in the storyline (yes, despite the age restrictions there is a story line). Please visit the Slayers Hentai Fanfiction Archive (.com) to read previous and subsequent chapters.

*****************(Classic Snowflake Openings Rock!)*****************

**Chapter 2**

"Lina...."

Something was wrong. Without further prompting Lina turned around and jogged the few feet back to Amelia. Amelia was turned away from her, fully naked, "What is it?" Slowly turning back around to face Lina, Amelia kept her gaze fixed downward, afraid to meet her friends' eyes as she nodded her head in the direction of her pelvic region.

"I'm bleeding..."

Lina shook her head back and fourth, "Well, I got some absorbent pads in my pack." Lina turned to get them but Amelia put her hand on Lina's arm and stopped her.

"You don't understand!" Lina turned her head to catch Amelia's eyes, there was an eerie edge there. Amelia started again, "This... has never happened before."

"What!?" Lina shouted, her mouth flapping open and unable to close. "But... but... I mean-- What's never happened before? I mean, you're nowhere near a kid," Then seeing her friends pleading look she added impulsively, "..y -you -your breasts, they're huge!" She stammered blushing a little at the unintentional compliment.

Amelia gulped audibly, embarrassed and still facing downward, "Daddy said that I was too young to be a woman." She paused just long enough to bring her eyes to meet with Lina's again, "He had the priestess' cast a spell on me to stop me from ever…. Having a… you know… until I was old enough."

"He what…." Lina was silent for a moment, "Why.... I never heard of such an asinine thing!" Lina pounded her fist in her hand, "What the hell was he thinking, there's no way he could do that to you!"

Amelia shook her head 'No.' "It's just that Daddy said I wasn't ready for womanhood yet, so he had them seal me. I guess it's been such a long time since they checked the seal, since I've been home, that it broke."

Getting more irate by the second, Lina huffed, "He didn't want you to have any bastard kids, that's what it was. I thought he trusted you more than that. I can't believe Phil would do this..." Despite her anger, Lina noticed the effect she was having on Amelia. Lina forced a smile for her benefit, purposefully curbing her own emotions and turned her mood more toward enthusiasm, "Well at least that explains you feeling like crap and why you can't cast spells."

Amelia could hardly manage the smallest of smiles back, "Yeah, you're right…." Lina nodded deliberately.

"Uh huh, you just get cleaned up and we'll head down to the baths, no big deal."

Again Amelia's mood dropped, "Lina," Amelia paused for a moment, unsure of how to continue, "I'm scared..." She finally got out in a frail, light voice.

Lina's eye twitched, she had to ask, "You've been told about ..." She paused scrambling for the wording, "..The birds and the bees. I hope, right?"

Amelia nodded hard, "Oh yeah, but," Amelia glanced to her clothes in a heap, her bloody panties laying on top of the pile, "I don't know what to do.…" Sounding outright pathetic Lina couldn't turn Amelia away, though the temptation was there.

"Okay, I'll help you, but you're gonna owe me!" Lina added half playfully as she started walking to get a towel, the smile finally coming back to Amelia's face.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Gourry walked out of his room just as the service staff were making their way down the hall lighting candles. The sun outside was quickly setting but it was still bright enough to see clearly thanks to the hotel layout. Thinking nothing of it he walked into Lina's room and immediately came to a halt. Amelia was naked, standing, and turned away from the door. She was on her one foot with her other foot on a stool, her leg bent at the knee. But the shocking thing, more so than the fact he might get fireballed or called a pervert for walking in on Amelia. Was that Lina was down on her knees, her shirt off and her face hidden from view behind Amelia's small butt and thighs. Amelia gave a light grunt and he saw Lina's head bob away from Amelia for a moment. Gourry's breath caught in his throat and he almost choked. "Geh." He eeped out and turned, immediately heading out the door, afraid to close it entirely from the sound it might make.

Turning he made his way back to his room and walked in, steadying his expression. Zelgadiss looked up from what he was doing, "I thought you were going down to bathe?"

Gourry sat down across from Zelgadiss and reached under the bed, pulling out his sword, "I was on my way there and I realized that I forgot to clean the sand out of the sheath."

Looking at him oddly, Zelgadiss had to ask, "Couldn't that wait?"

Gourry shook his head, "I have to do it now before I forget, it hasn't been done in awhile."

Giving his shoulders a shrug Zelgadiss lamented, "Oh well, I'll just wait to go down with you when you're done." Gourry nodded in the affirmative as he shakily started the process.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

"There, all cleaned up." Lina said, tossing away the bloody towel with a flourish and acting as cheerful as she could manage with the situation at hand.

Amelia smiled lightly, "Thank you ..."

Standing up, Lina let her pants drop to the ground, "Well, how about we just don't worry about it, you'll be okay." Amelia stood still for a moment, catching Lina's attention and stopping her from disrobing further. "What's.."

Despite her disrobement Amelia leaned in abruptly, wrapping Lina in a big hug, "Thank you so much..." Surprised momentarily Lina eventually brought her arms up around Amelia's back,

"It's okay." Lina cooed as she stroked Amelia's bare-skinned back. They held each other for a minute, Amelia squeezing her tightly a few times before they parted. "Okay, we really need to take a bath now." Lina said, accenting her point by waving her hand around, "We're stinking up the room, and we've still got to sleep here tonight.

Amelia gave a short laugh, "Okay then, but you're the one still dressed." Lina looked down at herself, the dust had made it's way through her clothes and her skin was impregnated with it, she focused on her bra and panties, normally they were red with white trim, but the trim had managed to turn brown.

"Well, you've got a point." Without any fanfare Lina unhooked her bra and tossed it in her pile and stepped out of her panties, white outlines showing where they previously covered her body. Lina grabbed up her clothes and put on a robe, which prompted Amelia to do likewise, "Okay then, let's go!"

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Cleaned and immeasurably revitalized Lina and Amelia left the baths just as Zelgadiss and Gourry were passing to the men's side. Zelgadiss nodded his head in their direction but Gourry turned his head a little in the opposite direction to avoid their gaze, irritating Lina but not causing her to loose her step with Amelia. Recovering quickly Lina waved her hand in their direction as she walked, "We're gonna head down to the kitchen and see if we can get some food delivered to our room, we'll see you two later!" She called out as she and Amelia turned the corner and went out of sight.

Lina ran her hands through her damp hair with barely a snag. She giggled at the freedom and cleanliness of it and threw her hands in the air exuberantly. "Ahhh! Nothing like a bath to raise the spirits, right Amelia!"

"Uh hum!" Amelia agreed, putting a skip into her next step and momentarily feeling elated. But quickly she felt that happiness start to fade. She hated the feeling, depression, to distract herself she started playing with the fabric of her robe, pinching the towel-like material between her fingers as they walked, not paying too much attention to where they were going. Soon enough they found the kitchen and Amelia winced as Lina pounded on the door.

"We need some service out here!" Lina demanded, raising her voice just enough to irk Amelia at her being rude. It was Lina though that ended up a little upset from not seeing Amelia give any reaction to her behavior.

In short order a man came to the door, "If you wanna order something, go in through the restaurant."

Lina sneered at the man and gestured to her bare feet and robe, "Does it look like I'm dressed for that? Besides, I thought you did room service?" The man glanced between Lina and Amelia.

"Well, yeah, but... you're supposed to fill out your order and give it to the front desk. You don't give it to me."

Lina countered, "Well, can I just order from you now that you're out here?"

Suddenly unsure of himself his initial confrontational edge vanished, "Well, I guess, but next time fill out your order card and give it to the desk."

Lina stomped her foot, slightly peeved, "No one told us to do that!"

Trying to diffuse the situation, the man made a calming gesture with his hands, "It's okay, just tell me what you want and give me your room number. I'll have my people in the kitchen prepare it and send it up to you right away." Lina smirked, she did after all like it when things turned out her way but Amelia cut in.

"Just bill it to the Saillune royal family, I've already proven my affiliation to the owner." The man started to bow but this time Lina cut in.

"No, don't bother, I'll pay when you bring it up to the room." Lina folded her arms indicating that the point was not up for argument. She knew how much Amelia hated her abusing the royal funds and was deciding to take it a little easy on her since she was having such a stressful day.

Bowing again the fellow pulled out a pad of paper and a pen and looked at Lina expectantly before licking the quill to get the ink flowing, "And what would you like today?" Lina licked her lips at the invitation, her mouth already salivating at the prospect of the first real meal in quite some time.

"Hummm... it's been awhile since we've ate anything good. But I'm not really in the mood for anything greasy. I'll take whatever you've got on your menu with chicken in it."

Logical reasoning compelled him to ask, "Is it some sort of sampler platter that you would like, we have at least a dozen dishes that involve chicken as one of the main ingredients..." He trailed off letting it sink in.

But Lina was quick to follow up, "Well, that sounds just about right to feed the both of us, eh Amelia." She nudged Amelia who found herself back in the conversation.

"Uhh, yeah."

Noticing that Amelia remained distant she added, "And a few bottles of wine too, the good stuff, she's royalty after all." Stunned but maintaining his composure the man bowed and ushered himself back in the kitchen, closing the door soundly. "How's that sound Amelia." Amelia nodded her head and Lina grabbed her hand, pulling her to the stairs, "Let's get up to our room and get ready for some food!"

Even though she was being forced to follow, Amelia was feeling better in spite of it, "It sound's good, it's been so long since we've ate right." Amelia grimaced, remembering just three days ago when they tried to make a feast out of a block of dried meat. They had been putting it off but eventually it was the only consumable they carried. It turned out to be so tough that they probably expended more energy eating it than it put into their bodies. Her jaw had hurt the remainder of the night over it and she regretted eating it all into the next day from the terrible pains it caused in her bowels. Then there was the time two days ago that Lina had used a summon spell to call fourth a dove, and Amelia had cried over them eating it so much, and it took so much of Lina's energy to summon that it just wasn't worth it to do again. Not to mention the amount of meat there did nothing to deaden anyone's appetite.

As the two of them hit the second floor it was remarkably cooler than downstairs. Away from the kitchen they started to feel a breeze come in. Then, entering their room it was even cooler. With the windows open, the chill of the evening had started to creep in. And unlike in the local wilderness where the obsidian grit held the heat all through the night, the limestone buildings were more than happy to relinquish their thermal energy back to the air and cool down with the setting sun. "It looks like we might have to use the blankets tonight." Amelia commented with a smile.

Feigning panic, Lina wailed, "Wha.. noooo, not the blankets." Her and Amelia laughed lightly over it and Lina rushed ahead into the room and threw herself on the bed. Causing it to squeak as she bounced once heavily on it before settling into the down comforter.

With a sudden movement at the end of the bed Lina looked up to see Amelia sitting down. The bed was large enough for the two of them to comfortably sleep on for once and Lina hoped that she wouldn't 'beat the crap' out of Amelia in her sleep like she tended to do. "I guess I'll sleep on the floor tonight." Amelia lamented while looking down.

Sitting up a little, Lina tried to catch the princess' face, "What? Why?" She rushed out, feeling her attempts of cheering the princess up falling away.

Amelia turned to Lina, "Well, I don't want to ruin the sheets." Lina shook her head.

"Wha- no, no, it doesn't work like that." She gestured to the white sheets and the soil she had left on them earlier from her dingy clothes, "We're in a hotel, if you get them dirty, they'll clean them, and if you keep that pad between your legs you shouldn't bleed on them anyway."

Giving a sniffle, Amelia tried to justify her thinking process, "Well, I don't..."

There was no room for compromise in Lina's voice, "Don't worry about it, it happens to all of us and no one else changes their life for it." Letting a wry smile play across her features she continued, "And you're definitely not going to worry about it once you're drunk." Lina boasted, knowing full well that Amelia never drank to excess. Instead of denying the plan though, Amelia took on a thoughtful look.

"Well... you're probably right."

Lina shot out her hands to ward off the idea, "I was just kidding, for all I know you're a violent drunk and you'll beat _me_ up in _your _sleep!" She joked, causing Amelia to get into it.

"Then how would that be any different from when you're sober!" Amelia grinned at Lina.

"Well, it's just-- damn! You're right, I'm violent when I'm sober..."

Amelia laughed whole-heartedly, "Lina, you're always violent!"

Her cheeks reddening, Lina tried to defend, "I meant when I sleep! I'm not always violent."

Immediately Amelia came up with a rebuttal, "I know quite a few bandits would vouch against that statement." Amelia smirked before the two of them burst into fits of laughter just as there was a knock at the door.

Lina was the first to compose herself and head to the door to greet room service. She exchanged pleasantries and lead the three people with their carts to the table where they started laying out the dishes. "Come on Amelia, time to eat!" Lina shouted with joy while sitting down. The waiters started unveiling the food drawing Ohh's and Ahhh's from Lina as each marvelous delicacy was revealed. Amelia had meanwhile made it to a seat on the opposite side of the table some ten feet away. With all the food finally laid out, one of the men came up to Lina and informed her that her bill was at the front desk. For once she really didn't care much about the bill at the moment and shooed him off, eager to enjoy her food.

It had been a somewhat difficult job but Lina felt she had significantly lightened Amelia's mood. She thought back to her first time, the embarrassment, and humiliation and thought that perhaps she had done a better job than most people could have to comfort Amelia. Satisfied with herself, and with the prospect of good food looming before them Lina decided that maybe a more extended vacation was in order, "Amelia, how 'bout we stay here for a few days, you know, relax from our life on the road, just for a bit longer than we were planning?" Amelia smiled back from across the table.

"You know, I was just hoping you'd suggest something like that." Lina smiled back and the two of them started digging in.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

It took a bit longer for Zelgadiss to groom himself than Gourry, but Gourry was enjoying the cool water anyway.

"Hey Zel, you almost done? I'm starting to look like a prune over here."

Zelgadiss leaned back into the water more, "You know, you don't have to wait for me."

"Hummm... but then who would I talk to?" Zelgadiss stood up and wiped some of the water off his body.

"I guess I'm ready to get out anyway. Want to head to the kitchen and see what kind of trouble Lina's causing?"

Following suit, Gourry stood up as well, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around himself, "You think they're still down there?"

Automatically Zelgadiss responded, "Probably. I mean, I'd think they would wait for their order." Then he added under his breath, "If only to get it a second faster."

Gourry nodded, "Hey Zel, if you're not that hungry yet, how about we worry about getting something later." Gourry finished quickly, the words seemed to express not a single thought but a hastily assembled amalgamation of them.

"Hummm... we could do that." Zelgadiss inspected Gourry's relieved expression carefully, taking his mind back to when they were coming in. He could tell that there was something going on between Gourry and Lina, but unquestionably on Gourry's side as Lina didn't show any inclination toward anything being amiss.

Zelgadiss wrapped a towel around his waist and used another towel to dry off his body, carefully blotting his hair dry for fear of shredding the towel. The two of them slipped into some loose fitting outfits the hotel had supplied, simple shirts and pants, thin fabric and uniform blue in color, the stereotypical boy bedtime outfit. Together they headed out of the men's side of the baths and back to their room. The walk uneventful and uncharacteristically silent. Zelgadiss felt some sort of tension in Gourry. It wasn't normally Zelgadiss' prerogative to delve into such matters, people need their room after all just as he needed his. But when it came to matters of Lina and Gourry, he had to admit the slightest bit of curiosity in their relationship.

Back in their room Gourry prompted Zelgadiss to light the candles with his magic. As Zelgadiss was busy Gourry pulled our his sword again and started honing the blade with a wet stone. Finished with his task Zelgadiss turned to him, "So, what's bothering you tonight?"

The question didn't provoke Gourry to lift his eyes from his work, "Nothing." But the tone of his reply didn't indicate that he did not want to talk about it, just that more prodding would be necessary.

"Hummm..." Zelgadiss walked over to Gourry and stood in front of him, "Something's up Gourry. Why don't you just tell me what's going on because we both know you'll cave eventually."

Gourry worked hard to keep his eyes from trailing up to meet Zelgadiss' face. "Nothing's going on Zel."

"Yeah, _right_..." Zelgadiss couldn't sense Gourry breaking down so he headed over to the door, "I'm going to go get us something from the kitchen. Maybe you'll be more talkative on a full stomach." Gourry didn't respond though and just kept working his sword, growling a little Zelgadiss resisted the urge to slam the door. Peaceful interrogations were something that he wasn't used to, but after several days in the wilderness, even Zelgadiss was eagerly looking forward to some real food.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

"That- that was great." Lina tried to maintain her composure, but the alcohol was starting to kick in. Both of them sat across from each other in just their robes, their hair still wild looking, damp, and starting to frizz from the bath. Lina got up from the table unsteadily and Amelia started laughing, Lina turned and saw that she was the one being laughed at, "Wah..?"

It took a moment for Amelia to compose herself, "You-re real drunk Leeena.." Amelia slurred purposefully, drawing out her name.

Lina scoffed in response, "Look who's talk'in..." Lina wobbled over to the wall they shared with Zelgadiss and Gourry then pounded on it, "We're a gonna go to sleep!" She giggled as she heard Gourry shout something back. Despite the solid stone, she'd made her point.

With her intentions passed along she hobbled over toward the bed, looking quite ungraceful as she made her way. Lina let her robe drop from around her shoulders exposing her naked body in the moonlight flooding through the open windows, "I'm free!" She shouted playfully before hopping onto the bed and beating on it to entice Amelia. Amelia stopped picking at the leftovers of a chicken carcass and looked across the room at Lina, the chandelier above her head brightly illuminated her for Lina, but to Amelia, Lina could hardly be seen, her double vision wasn't helping matters.

She heard Lina beating on the mattress though, "Wha'daya want?"

Lina giggled some more, "Sleepy time!" She yelled simply.

Getting up was a challenge for Amelia, she was not used to being intoxicated and as a result she wasn't used to handling the way her body distributed her weight. Stumbling, she reached out and tried to grab her chair to steady herself but missed and dropped to the ground in what seemed like slow motion. Lina laughed even harder at her, falling onto her back and pointing. Doing nothing for Amelia's confidence she tried again, if only to prove she could do it. She got to her feet and concentrated, crossing the handful of steps to the bed, acting passingly sober. "Come on... let's get some sleep..." Lina mumbled, tossing and turning and burrowing her way under the covers.

A little hesitant, Amelia pondered taking off her robe too. She didn't want to make a mess though if she bled through during the night. With synchronicity Lina reassured her, "Don't worry 'bout it, just get under the covers." Amelia smirked and tried to undo the knot holding her robe shut, but quickly found it had become smarter than her since she had tied it. She lacked the dexterity to undo the knot and cried out weakly in frustration. In response Lina pulled herself from beneath the covers and moved over to Amelia. She crawled on her knees, her breasts hanging beneath her and moving slightly as she worked her way across the bed. The pure moonlight spilling down over her back, casting shadows in just the right places, with her hair alluringly masking her face.

"La... la... Lina..." Amelia started as Lina got up to her, raising her head to meet Amelia's eyes and effortlessly untying the knot.

Lina slowly sat upright on her knees, almost eye level with Amelia on their two different surfaces. She reached up and put her hands in Amelia's robe and pushed it off her shoulders. "Just relax Amelia. Get some sleep." Amelia gulped at the contact of Lina's skin with hers and nodded mindlessly, her thoughts settling just a little longer than she was comfortable with on the fact that Lina had just undressed her again. Lina sat back down and rolled away from Amelia, re-working her way beneath the covers and lifting up one corner, inviting Amelia under.

Looking down at her own body in the moonlight Amelia ran her eyes over her breasts, and her flat stomach, down to the little tuft of hair between her legs, unable focus her thoughts. On impulse. she touched her flanks and ran her hands up her own sides, enjoying the provocative feel of them against her skin and settled them on her breasts. She gave them a indulgent squeeze causing Lina to feel a little uncomfortable, "Just get in the bed.." Amelia stopped and reluctantly put a foot on the bed, working it under the cover with her body following under the covers moments later. Lina reached over gingerly and patted Amelia on the shoulder, "Just relax and get some sleep...." In the feathery bed, Lina's wakefulness didn't last long, and Amelia followed her to slumber soon thereafter.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Fidgeting a little with his thumbs Gourry finally spoke up, "Ummm... you think it's a little weird that Lina and Amelia are sleeping together?" Zelgadiss' face scrunched up at the sudden question.

"What?"

Gourry kept on, "Well, you know... they're in the same room together."

Smacking his hand to his forehead at Gourry's stupidity, Zelgadiss groaned, "Gourry, we're in the same room together."

Gourry put his hands in front of him in a defensive manner, his words picking up speed, "But, it's different." Looking at the beds Gourry observed, "It's been such a long time since we've had beds to sleep in, but did you notice that Amelia and Lina got a King sized bed, but we got two beds... they had another room with two beds didn't they?"

Like any tired person would be expected to, Zelgadiss ran his hands over his own face. "And just what is your point?"

Suddenly Gourry seemed to become intrigued with his thumbs and looked down as he twiddled them, "Well, you know..."

Finally getting frustrated Zelgadiss retorted back, "No, I don't know, all I know is that I need some sleep." Gourry dropped onto his back on his bed, pushing his feet beneath the covers. Zelgadiss in turn blew out the candles between the beds leaving Gourry to his thoughts.

"Just what was going on..." Gourry mumbled to himself, straining to hear anything coming from the wall to his back, and failing.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

Trying to broach conversation Gourry started to form a word but let it die, then after a moment and after capturing Zelgadiss' attention he tried again, "They stop serving breakfast in a little bit Zel, you think I should go get Lina?" Zelgadiss sighed and turned back to Gourry, they had both ate without bothering to wake the girls, but Gourry had been like a kid anxious to wake a pet.

"I guess you should or else they might not get anything to eat." Finally given 'permission', Gourry managed to keep himself composed, somberly acknowledging Zelgadiss before standing up and heading to the stairs.

Like most upper-class motels the stairs were carved in stone, actually the whole building was stone, which made it easy to sneak around. Gourry decided to take advantage of the architecture and head over to Lina's room for a bit of spying. The walk was short, and as fortune would have it, the door was unlocked. Nothing standing in his way aside from his respect for Lina and Amelia's privacy, he carefully turned the knob and pushed it open, only allowing the knob to come back to the normal position slowly to avoid the sound of the mechanism engaging. The sun outside was already up over the top of the surrounding buildings and Gourry was surprised to find Amelia and Lina still in bed. He had expected them to have at least been up and sorting loot, or making preparations, going over maps, or something.

There was nothing of the sort going on though. His better judgment said to just leave and drive whatever thoughts were in his head as far away as possible. But curiosity got the better of him. He walked over to within ten feet of the bed and could easily see from that distance that both Lina and Amelia were naked, what's more, Lina was spooning Amelia. Gourry licked his dry lips as he took in the scene. Although the comforter they were under was thick and hid the details, their feet were distinctly uncovered to the knees, showing off their slender legs. Furthermore, the cover did not come up all the way, whereas it covered Amelia to her neck, her black hair tussled slightly over the white pillows, the same cover on Lina, who was positioned higher up on the bed, hardly covered the base of her breasts. Gourry's heartbeat doubled as he noticed he could see one of Lina's nipples over the covers, and he followed her fair skin from there, up her body to her face. The angelic expression and wonderfully scattered red-brown hair screaming innocence, yet... there was a sexual excitement...

Fearing for his life, Gourry ever so cautiously started walking backwards out of the room. Knowing full well that fate could have the two of them wake up any second. He even held the doorknob as he walked out backwards and allowed it to close with his pendulum walking style. Before stopping, bracing himself, and knocking loudly. "Hey, Amelia, Lina, time to get up!" He pounded again knowing that it might take quite a bit to rouse them and was eventually satisfied with Lina screaming something at him. "The kitchen's going to close until lunch, you need to hurry up if you want some breakfast!" He shouted before hearing the scattered sounds in the room pick up in volume.

Without warning the door opened a crack and he heard Lina, "Gourry, could you go downstairs and get our clothes from the desk?"

Still flustered he managed out, "Okay. I'll be right back." And ran off with Lina closing the door just as he ran down the stairs.

Lina walked back in the room, on the bed Amelia was sitting very still, downcast, "Lina... I think I ruined the sheets...."

Looking down at the bed Lina sighed, "If the sheets really bother you, we'll go out today and buy some new ones, would that make you happy?" Amelia nodded and Lina continued, "I've been thinking... maybe we should just stick around this city until you're feeling better...." Then dropping her serious front in favor of a more playful attitude she added, "Try to act normal around the guys though, we don't want to have to explain anything to them, right?"

Amelia looked confused for a moment, "Didn't you tell me that last night?"

"Hum.." Lina pondered, "Yeah.. but I thought you might have been too drunk to remember…" She finished with a smile that nearly caused Amelia to face-fault.

"I wasn't that drunk!"

Lina's smile didn't waver under the assault, "Hey, you couldn't even make it to the bed without falling down, I'd say you were pretty damned drunk." Amelia's only counter was to stick out her tongue.

But there was something that seemed odd and Amelia's playful smile started to fade after a moment, "Lina, why are you acting so nice to me?"

"Acting so nice…!" Lina started a retort, questioning what Amelia thought of her normal behavior, but calmed herself quickly. Sitting down on the bed heavily Lina sighed, "Listen, I know what you're going through, and…well, I know what it's like to have no one to turn to." Lina paused a moment, her eyes feeling a little misty but no tears forming, "Anyway, I just want to make this a little easier on you than it was on me." Amelia smiled in reply, at once feeling more emotional. Her mind though inevitably drawn to the question of what did happen to Lina. Sitting so close on the bed Amelia moved in about half the distance with her arms open for a hug, then stopped, hesitating, Lina held her ground though. Still unsure as to weather or not it was the right thing to do, Amelia decided that if it was in her heart it was the right thing to do. In a quick movement Amelia closed the gap and pulled Lina into her embrace.

"Thanks..."

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

After having Gourry come back to the table, acting stranger than ever Zelgadiss was looking foreword to some semblance of normality when Lina and Amelia finally arrived. But immediately he noticed that something was a little off there too. Still, he figured he could simply sit and wait and things would work themselves out. So he silently sipped his tea while keeping only the smallest bit of his attention on the going ons at the table as Lina and Amelia ate more than a normal breakfast. Well, upon closer inspection he noticed Amelia lagging behind her usual total consumption level. Additionally, there was something else he couldn't put his finger on. Combined with Gourry's recent erratic behavior Zel felt himself a bit uneasy.

Happily full, Lina pushed herself to her feet with the aid of the table. Stretching exaggeratedly, "Well, I hope you two slept good because we're staying here a couple days." Although the slightest bit irritated from the prospect of lost time, Zelgadiss was still overall grateful, after so long in the nearby wasteland a few days with beds and baths was looking pretty good despite his resilient chimera nature. All in all it made him wonder if Lina was doing her part to spoil him lately with these types of creature comforts. Gourry on the other hand was trying to project a cool exterior but he felt there was something peculiar with the timing of things. Still, it was nothing he could pinpoint.

"And Prince Phil is treating us!" Lina shouted jubilantly as she fished out the royal signet of the kingdom of Saillune from her chest wrap.

"Hey!" Amelia made a grab for it once it was in view but Lina took two steps back, just out of her reach, sticking out her tongue playfully.

"I promise I'll give it back to you this time when we're done." Despite the uncharacteristic compromise Amelia folded her arms and huffed. Keeping up her momentum Lina kept with her plan, "Today though I was planning on going out to all the shops to restock our supplies, food, water, the basics, and I need a new tent." Zelgadiss nodded at the mention of Lina's tattered tent that had somehow been struck with an errant fireball.

Satisfied with the layout planned Lina nodded, "We'll all head out and meet back here about dusk for dinner, okay?"

Being proactive Zelgadiss stood up, "I guess I'll go find the library..." Pausing Zelgadiss looked at Amelia catching her eye, he waited a moment for the inevitable question. But it didn't come, he was so thrown off though that he had to ask, "Would you like to come with me Amelia..." Put on the spot Amelia wasn't sure, she looked to Lina who was shooing her along making motions with her hands telling Amelia that she should go, but that wasn't enough to coax her.

"... Not today... maybe tomorrow though." Amelia finished with a slightly forced smile. Not at all upset, Zelgadiss nodded.

"Okay then, I'll see you all later." Dramatically Zelgadiss turned sharply, his cape coming out behind him and taking to the air, his pace toward the doors just enough to keep the cape suspended off the ground.

Lina smirked, "Show off." Now looking at Gourry she got to the final order of business, "And how about you find a nice sword smith to do some maintenance on my short sword." She accentuated her point by reaching to her side and unclasping the sword, handing it to Gourry. "The handle's been getting a little loose and the edge needs honed, it's too nicked up for me to touch it up any more." Gourry looked at the blade expectantly, its severe maintenance issues sticking out to his expert eye. Other thoughts momentarily forgotten he nodded solemnly. "Great, so we'll all meet back here in a bit. Come on Amelia." Lina reached out and pulled Amelia to her feet and without another word dragged her out the door leaving Gourry with his task for the day.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Although Gourry could have attempted to fix the blade himself, he was sure the deep nicks were the type that would require the whole sword to be re-worked by a sword smith to get them out in their entirety. Additionally he didn't have the necessary pieces for the handle, so, begrudgingly he had went in search of a sword smiths' services for the day. Despite his confidence in his own abilities he decided to bring his own sword in for a check up as well.

Realizing the qualities of the city though, the size of it and the great possibilities of near innumerable sword smiths of untested quality he also opted to check with the front desk for their opinion on the matter as a head start. As luck would have it though their recommended place of business was not far from his present location and after a short walk he found himself at a building unlike any in the surrounding area. The streets were full of people walking and the buildings all around him stood tall and were made of stone with the exception of the sword smiths shop. It was built in the same place where a building would be, and looking up the second and third floors matched well with the surrounding architecture, however the bottom floor was completely open. Pillars held up the rest of the buisness but if it were not for some light cloth covers draped from the ceiling, one could look right through the building.

Since there wasn't a designated door Gourry simply pushed aside some of the drapes and walked in. Inside though it was considerably darker than it was out on the street so it took some time for his eyes to adjust. First into view he could see the deep orange glow of the forge, then the rest of the darkness came into view slowly. First tables surrounding the outlying edges, then as time went on further details, swords and all sorts of knives and maces were placed on the tables for sale or trade and just as he was adjusting to the darkness he started to notice the penetrating heat. Already his skin was starting to tingle, outside the temperature had been uncomfortable, and within the draped area it was downright unbearable.

Rubbing off the sweat Gourry started in, toward the glowing forge and the man working it. Strange, it was fairly quiet despite the bustle of the street just outside, the only sound discernable was the deadening sound of a hammer striking against the hot metal. "Hey, old man!" Gourry waved his hand to get the his attention. Looking up from his work Gourry quickly found that it was not a man but a young girl that was working the steel. She looked up and smeared the sweat on her brow, her dark bangs clinging to her forehead. Suddenly thrown off Gourry looked around at all the swords and implements of war surrounding him and back to what he had thought was a lanky old man. Which turned out to be on further inspection quite a trim and girl, wearing a loose fitting long sleeved shirt and pants to match. Gourry still got quite the shock from her sweat soaked chest, which managed to define itself by clinging to the fabric there.

"What do you want?" Although not acting like she was loosing her patience she took advantage of a moment of free time to grab the top of her shirt and pull it away from her body to fan away some of the perspiration.

Gourry composed himself in record time, "I.. I just needed a few repairs." He reached behind his back and unhooked Lina's short sword, handing it over, then after a moment's hesitation he reached to his side and unhooked his sword as well. Fighting a little against his pride he felt compelled to hand it over and he smiled back at her. "The short sword is my partners an it needs some major blade repairs and all the regular maintenance." Already she had Lina's sword out of its sheath and was examining it, holding it at eye level and looking down the blade she huffed at the disregard for the blade and its lack of upkeep. As she sat it down and hefted Gourry's sword he started again, "That one is mine." He grinned a little, some of his pride coming across, "I'd like to think I take good care of it myself but I thought maybe someone else should take a look at it."

She removed the sword from its sheath and looked it over, "I can tell who's the more responsible of you two."

Gourry blushed a little, "Can you have them done in two days?"

She nodded, "It shouldn't be a problem, I can have yours done later today if you'd like."

Gourry gave the slightest of nods to acknowledge her then started off nervously again, "You know, it would be a lot cooler in here if you opened up some of these drapes." She put down Gourry's sword and started to fan herself again.

"You think I don't know that…. I just can't because the yahoos in this town can't keep their eyes off my chest while I'm working the bellows…" She accentuated the point by pushing out her chest a little, which Gourry seemed less than inclined to observe.

"I guess I'll be back by later then…"

The smith nodded and turned, picking up her hammer again and the piece she had been working on, putting it in the fire and starting to work the bellows with her feet. His job for the moment expediently completed Gourry decided to get out of that hot spot as quick as possible. And after passing through the draped barrier Gourry was surprised to find the outside comparatively cool. "Hummmm… now where could Lina be..?"

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Dressed more casually than usual Lina and Amelia made their way through the occasional crowds on the streets. Over her shoulder Lina had slung her tent, complete with carrying sack and walked with the slightest hint of a swagger, a bit of cockiness from her recent bartering, leading to her acquisition of the tent at rock-bottom prices. Noticing Lina's inability to keep the smile from her face Amelia countered with a little jibe, "Well, at least you didn't make him give _you_ money for the tent." But it had the opposite effect and made Lina smile all the wider and giggle.

"You know, maybe I should have tried, I was on a roll!" Smacking her fist into her palm for emphasis Lina kept up, "It's been such a long time since I've really got to haggle with someone!" Her happiness somehow managed to spread to Amelia though and she could hardly keep the smile from her face as well despite how frugal her friend could be.

Suddenly Lina stopped and put her hand on Amelia's shoulder, bringing her to a stop as well. "Wha.." But Amelia followed Lina's pointing, "Oh, a linen store?"

Lina nodded enthusiastically in return, "Let's get in there and buy some sheets while I'm still on a hot streak!" Lina rubbed her hands together and cracked her knuckles before grabbing Amelia's hand and pulling her in behind her. At that same time, further down the street Gourry was just turning the corner and managed to catch, just barely, the duo entering one of the stores on the left hand side of the boulevard. Despite the pedestrian traffic, and that he didn't see exactly what store they went into, he now had a destination in mind.

Turning on her heel, Lina brought her hands up to her chest and brought with them a satin white sheet, presenting it for Amelia to look over. "So, do you think this one looks like the ones at the inn?" Amelia looked it over carefully before shaking her head discouraged.

"Why don't we just go back and try to get the sheets cleaned, or we could just tell them we ruined them…" Lina replied to Amelia's retort with a negative sound.

"I know from experience how hard it is to get blood out of my clothes, and on something that shade of pristine white, it will never come out." Lina's tone softened, "And I don't want you to get embarrassed, that's all."

Amelia exhaled loudly, "I'm glad you're going through this with me but…." Amelia trailed off as she realized that it had crossed over, the situation meaning more to Lina than it did to her and decided that the best course of action was just to let Lina do what she felt she needed to do.

A new course of action decided, Amelia decided to lighten the mood a bit and laugh her way through the headache that she'd been dealing with and the cramps that were setting in. "None of this is even my fault!"

Lina raised her eyebrow at Amelia's loud proclamation, "Oh?"

Amelia nodded astutely, "You're the one that had me get in bed naked."

Putting her hand to her chin, Lina over-exaggerated the thinking process, "You know… I guess you're right." Amelia chuckled on the inside.

"And that means you'll take care of it right?"

In her usual matter of fact manner Lina was quick to reply, "Of course, I'll take care of it."

Amelia frowned, "You know I don't like keeping secrets, especially from Gourry and Zelgadiss." Although they had never made a big deal about it, Lina had always made the others aware when she was 'vulnerable' just so no one would leave her defenseless. Lina patted Amelia on the head.

"It's okay if we keep this one, just between you and me." Amelia smiled back and reached in and hugged Lina tightly, despite her mental protests and dislike of being coddled by her, Amelia was actually quite happy and grateful for the attention and worry that she was getting from Lina and felt that a hug was the least she could offer.

Of course having come into earshot about the time Amelia raised her voice, Gourry managed to take everything out of context. So much so that he had started taking a few steps toward the door by the time he decided that he didn't need to know about whatever was going on. But his presence was not noticed by either Lina or Amelia and unfortunately his escape from the establishment was entirely successful.

/\/\||/\/\-=End of Chapter 2=-/\/\||/\/\


	3. Chapter 3

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Chapter 3 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

.com

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

This is just one chapter of a multi-chapter fanfic, reading previous chapters is necessary to understand what is going on in the storyline (yes, despite the age restrictions there is a story line). Please visit the Slayers Hentai Fanfiction Archive (.com) to read previous and subsequent chapters.

*****************(Classic Snowflake Openings Rock!)*****************

**Chapter 3**

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

"They were doing what?" Zelgadiss immediately hushed himself but had to struggle to keep himself in check. Lina and Amelia's tents were only a short distance away. Gourry's silence over the last few days had been unnerving, but his confession as to the cause of his silence had been even more unexpected. Though he had known a confession was on the horizon. Since they had left the city a day previous he could tell Gourry was looking for the right time to get something off his chest, but this…

Speaking up, Gourry repeated himself, "I just walked in, and Amelia was naked- Her leg was propped up or something and Lina was down on her knees between her legs and Lina was getting naked, and I didn't know what to do!" He finished exasperated.

"Gourry, whatever you saw may have looked like they were doing something indecent but there's just no way…" They both paused for a minute before Zelgadiss picked back up, "You're sure you saw that, but..."

Gourry shook his head, his expression solemn, "And the next day when I walked in they were both naked." Gourry's words were picking up pace before Zelgadiss cut him off again.

"Wait, you walked in?" Gourry shook off the question though.

"They had rooms with double beds Zel, why did they get a room with a single?" Beginning to compose himself again Zelgadiss attempted to reason.

"Maybe Lina just likes a bigger bed, she seems to be that type of person."

Again Gourry picked up, his voice already gaining momentum, "But, there were other things too. The next day I overheard them talking, and Lina was the one that convinced Amelia to get naked with her, and that they would keep it a secret from us."

"Woah, wait a second." Zelgadiss made a stopping motion with his hands, "You've been thinking this over quite a bit haven't you?" Still though he couldn't help but crack a smile at the thought of Gourry actually thinking over anything with intensity.

Gourry gave a crooked smile, "Yeah, its kind of been on my mind."

Composing himself for a moment Zelgadiss tried again, "So, what you're saying…" Zelgadiss paused waiting for Gourry to fill in the blank, it took a moment longer than it would take with most but he took the opportunity.

"I'm saying that Lina and Amelia are a couple…"

Zelgadiss sighed, "That's what I thought you were trying to say." Obviously not converted to his way of thinking, Gourry decided to press his point.

"Have you noticed how much time the two of them have spent together lately, don't they seem closer to you, and I swear they took at least five baths at that hotel we were at in three days!" He was still trying to keep his voice down but it was picking up as he became more animated. Gourry glanced around but it was hard to see with the fire drowning out the surrounding darkness. Lina had headed out a short time ago to do some scouting before she turned in for the night and Amelia was already in her tent. Gourry didn't feel like getting caught discussing the two of them.

"Gourry, they're women, women take more baths than men."

A rebuttal already in his head Gourry was quick to speak, "I know that, but they never did before… and they were spending so much time in their room…"

Zelgadiss had heard enough, "Now you're trying to get me to believe they're being intimate with each other?" Gourry nodded ever so slightly. Again, Zel felt compelled to sigh and rub his face, turning his attention to the fire. Silence…

Quickly though Gourry was at it again, "It's just, even if I'm wrong I feel a little less crazy telling someone."

"Yeah, you'll see, your mind was running away with that idea because you were keeping it inside." Still, without looking away from the fire Zelgadiss poked it with a nearby stick, sending up some embers, "Lina should be back shortly, let's just get some sleep for tonight."

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Opening her eye ever so slightly Amelia could hardly make out the form of a female entering her tent, with pains taken to do so as silently as possible. As her vision sharpened she took in the shoulder guards and hair and rapidly discerned the identity of the visitor. "Lina?" Sleepy but not yet having fallen asleep Amelia realized she had no clue why Lina would go through the trouble of sneaking in, unless something was amiss. Without a word Amelia started to tighten up and prepare for a fight. Lina made a muffled sound. Curious, and a little worried Amelia sat up just as Lina was sitting down next to her. As she sat up though Lina reached behind Amelia and grabbed her pillow, putting it over her own face, and unleashing a roaring torrent of laugher dead into it.

Completely perplexed now Amelia sat there stunned as Lina continued to laugh beyond what she would consider normal. Eventually though Lina pulled the pillow away from her face, her eyes teary and short on breath she had to regain her composure, "Lina..?" Lina held out her hand to indicate she needed a minute and continued breathing heavily, punctuated by the occasional giggle. Finally though she locked eyes with Amelia, barely keeping the bulk of the smile from her lips.

"You'll never believe this… Gourry thinks we're a couple!" The announcement was of course followed by the need for the pillow resurging and Amelia was forced to sit perplexed as Lina unloaded more laughter into the muffling device. But the fit didn't last as long, Amelia's dumbfounded expression pulling her out of it.

"A what?" The question caused Lina to giggle but she held it in. She tried again, this time using a more effluent terminology.

"He thinks that we're romantically entangled!" The exclamation being a relative volume and the whole conversation still being fairly muted.

"You mean… he thinks that you and me… love-love each other?" Amelia was looking between her hands confused while Lina's smile again grew and she was forced to use the pillow for a third time. Finally a smile started to come to Amelia too as she started to see the absurdity of it, "What would make him even think that?" Deciding that maybe Amelia should be spared the embarrassment of what Gourry saw (and for that matter leaving Lina wondering how he saw the things he did) she decided to omit some details.

"He's just noticed that we've been spending a lot of time together lately. He was actually trying to convince Zel that we were _lovers_…" Lina drug out the last word like a schoolgirl would to make light of a situation, causing Amelia to blush and start laughing simultaneously. "Of course Zel wouldn't believe a word of it." Amelia nodded, "But that didn't stop Gourry from giving his all to convince him that we were a couple."

Putting her hand on Amelia's shoulder, they each shared their muffled laughter for a minute. Lina swallowed hard and wiped some of the tears from her eyes, "So, I was thinking that maybe we could mess with Gourry some." Although the comedic value was important in Lina's mind, there was also a slight revenge aspect as he had obviously seen some things that he shouldn't have spying on them. "How about we _pretend_ to be in love, and keep going until we have both of them believing it, then spring the joke on them."

Despite her nature Amelia couldn't help but laugh at the idea, agreeing after a moment of sputtering laughter, "Okay, so what do we do?" Both of them still had quite the case of the giggles.

"I don't know, we'll figure something out." Lina pushed herself up and started opening the tent flap, "If you figure something out Amelia, tell me in the morning. I've got to get some sleep, well… at least I'll try." Even the slightest provocation forced Lina to restrain herself from laughing

Slipping out of the tent Lina turned to notice Gourry just getting into his tent, he in response pivoted just in time to see her exiting Amelia's tent. Their eyes locked for a second and Lina used all of her will power to force her gaze to reflect some internal emotion other than hilarity. She partially succeeded but before she could turn away her smile was already back in full force. And on her way back to her tent she had to cover her mouth with both hands to prevent herself from exploding into all out laughter as she realized how Gourry would over-think what just happened. Crawling into her tent she bundled up in the covers.

Sleeping was a challenge, all she could think of was the absurdity of the situation, and Gourry's propensity to misinterpret even the most docile of situations, and how she could take advantage of that over the coming days to drive him crazy. After some time, with the situation being just as foremost in her mind as before, she couldn't resist an impulse to drive the situation further. She pushed herself from the ground and hobbled out of the tent. For the most part clothed but stripped down to her essentials, a simple shirt and underwear she made her way back to Amelia's tent. "Amelia, are you still up?" Lina called out lightly, tapping on the canvas flap, making a dull sound that spread out over the tent. In response Amelia groaned and Lina took that as in invitation to open the flap and step in. It was dark inside but since she had last been inside she could tell that Amelia had moved around and was now laying on her side. Lina surprised her by laying down next to her, her face only a few inches away from Amelia's.

"I figured now would be as good a time as any." Lina reached down and grasped the edge of Amelia's covers and lifted her legs, tucking them underneath, "If I spend the night together with you in your tent, that should get Gourry's imagination going.."

Having come back to some level of coherentness and with their upcoming joke on her mind, Amelia gave a short giggle, "Okay then, good night Lina."

Lina responded to the playfulness with a likewise response, "See you tomorrow morning Amelia." They were both grinning widely at one another now and shared a laugh, before they rolled their separate ways and managed to get to sleep within a surprisingly reasonable amount of time.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

As soon as Lina exited the tent she could feel eyes watching her. Acting nonchalant she glanced over to the fire where Zelgadiss and Gourry were sitting. Zelgadiss for his part acting just as cool and collected as Lina but Gourry unable to feign interest in anything else, going so far as to nudge Zelgadiss violently, who was putting considerable effort into ignoring Gourry. Lina intentionally stretched in an exaggerated manner to imply that she had slept exceedingly well. Additionally though it showed off that Lina was not dressed for the road, leading Gourry to believe that Lina hadn't somehow slept in Amelia's tent on accident.

In an unprecedented action Lina headed over to the fire before putting on her usual garb. Sitting carefully on the log closest to the flames she pulled her feet up to her chest and stretched her bed shirt over her knees to her ankles. The warmth at this time of day was significantly less as they had made their way out of the desert and into higher elevations. As such the heat from the fire was quite welcome after a night of sleeping on the ground. Gourry was nearly boiling over, he couldn't keep silent any longer, "Why'd you sleep in Amelia's tent last night?" Despite Gourry's reputation for lack of tact she hadn't expected such a direct question and applauded him for it, but she had an all purpose contingency answer.

"Sore wa himitsu deusu" Lina admonished, waving her finger in a chiding manner.

"Gah!" Gourry nearly fell off the log, likewise Zelgadiss nearly spit out whatever it was he was drinking, despite the way he was taking pains to make it look like he wasn't even paying attention to what the two of them were saying. Putting on a bit of a show Lina put her index finger to her chin and looked to the sky thoughtfully.

"Why does it matter to you?" Flustered at having the question turned on him he couldn't manage a coherent answer.

"Well… I-- I don't know-- you know.."

She turned back to him, beaming a simple smile, "We're good friends, does that mean we can't sleep together?"

There was an intentional naivety in Lina's wording that left Gourry wondering if she was trying to goad him on or was completely oblivious to any ulterior meaning to Gourry's question. Still, he was at a loss for a comeback, "Well… I guess there's nothing wrong with that…" Lina for her part was now acting bored of the conversation.

"So are you gonna cook up something to eat, or am I going to have to do it?"

Gourry motioned a little to the fire, "I cooked awhile ago, but the pan's right there if you're hungry."

"What do you mean '**If** I'm hungry' I just woke up! And we spent all day yesterday following that damn path around the lake that turned into that bog before we even got to trudging through the forest, I've gotta eat!" Lina snorted.

Cringing back Gourry shrugged his shoulders, "But you weren't up yet, and you've been sleeping in lately, I didn't know when you'd wake up."

He had her there, she shrugged it off, "Meh." Then stood up, letting her shirt roll off her knees just as she got to her feet, showing off her shapely legs once again. "Okay, I guess I'll make something in a minute." At seeing Gourry perk up she added, "Not for you! For me and Amelia." Lina gave a wink and giggled before walking away. However, as she walked off, Gourry moved in closer to Zelgadiss.

He started off in a hushed voice, "Did that seem strange to you…?"

Zelgadiss swirled the liquid in his cup, contemplating it, "Hummm…" He took another drink, "It is Lina, it's kind of hard to tell." He turned to look at Gourry, "You've been with her the longest out of all of us, what do you think?"

He shook his head, "Honestly, I have no idea." Zelgadiss smiled as Gourry continued, "I've known her for a long time-- but she keeps so much inside, I really don't know that much about her. Every time I think I've figured something out about her she goes and proves me wrong."

Zelgadiss had to agree, "Yeah, that's about how I feel..."

"So what are we going to do?" Zelgadiss raised his eyebrow in response to the question.

"We? Where does this _we_ come from? And why do _we_ have to do anything?"

Moving in a little closer, Gourry gave Zelgadiss a nudge with his elbow, "Come on Zel…"

Zelgadiss groaned, "Look, I know what you thought you saw, but we've been with Amelia and Lina long enough. You can't go thinking these wild thoughts at the drop of a hat." Zelgadiss heard Gourry start to pipe in with something but cut him off, "In any case I think you're over-thinking things for once, and we should just sit back and let things play out for themselves. That way _we_ don't come out looking like idiots."

Gourry had moved in, "But.."

Coming out of her tent, comb in hand, Lina caught a glimpse of Gourry and Zelgadiss holding their 'secret' conversation. And she had to laugh, in a muffled manner of course, at how easy the two of them were to manipulate. One little thing out of the ordinary and they were both questioning their sanity. She couldn't hold back the smile though as the conversation came to a dead stop the moment Gourry saw her. With Gourry looking right at her she felt the only thing to do was wave. She did so enthusiastically and he grimaced knowing that she realized they had been talking about her. Again though the ridiculousness of the situation came to mind and she had to stifle herself from a fit of laughter which apparently did not lighten the situation any for Gourry.

Still combing her hair she went over to Amelia's tent and pulled open the top of the flap. "You can come out now." Their eyes met and Amelia knew what the smile on Lina's face meant. "They bought it all, hook, line, and sinker." Amelia grinned widely and clasped on the remaining jewel around her neck. "Come on, let's go!" Acting forceful, but the smile dissolving any authority Lina reached in and grabbed Amelia by the hand and hauled her to her feet through the opening of the tent.

Lina headed ahead to the fire and took a seat between Zelgadiss and Gourry, with plenty of room for Amelia next to her. She bent foreword and put the skillet on the rocks surrounding the fire to warm it up before going through some of their rations to pick out something that seemed appetizing, settling for some eggs and dried beef. Mixing the two on the pan being an effective way to re-hydrate the meat and cook the eggs. Lina was cracking some eggs and mixing them with the meat just as Amelia was sitting down.

Stopping what she was doing, Lina turned to see if Amelia was letting on any kind of a smile that might have lingered from the tent, but she saw none. Purposefully, she let her eyes linger a little longer than she normally would before turning back to continue cooking. She wasn't sure if Zelgadiss or Gourry caught it, but it was the best way to convince the two of them that there was something going on. After all, the little things were the hardest things to fake and would be the least suspect. In turn Lina congratulated herself on her acting ability and that she would think of such things.

Lifting up off her haunches Lina dropped back and let her butt drop on the log between Amelia and Gourry as she gave the eggs a few moments to cook. There was silence, unusual… Just the crackling of the fire and the frying of the eggs. The air though was filled with the delicious wholesome aroma of the fire combined with the eggs and meat and her honest to goodness hunger was ready to burst fourth and devour everything. Leaning foreword she just barely nicked the edge of the pan handle with her fingers, stretching even further she turned the pan enough to get the handle toward her and grab it. Despite its heat she was easily able to bring it to her, her gloves being more than enough to dissipate the heat.

She set the pan on the ground between her legs as she re-situated herself on the log before moving foreword and back into the ration pack pulling out two forks. Finally settling down on the log she dropped one in Amelia's lap and scooted herself over to accommodate the pan between the two of them, setting it on the log as well before digging in. It wasn't the quantity of food they ate at the restaurants for sure, but on the road it would be cumbersome to carry that much food and as such they ate modestly from time to time and longed for the upcoming days of restaurant consumption.

The whole scene was an unusual act. For Lina to cook for another, or even share was usually strange, let alone something so meager. Gourry was the first to try his hand at breaking the atmosphere, "Lina, how close do you think we are?"

Taking a moment to finish chewing, Lina pointed with her fork toward the horizon, "We'll have to head North at least another two, maybe three days before we get to the next town, then from there… it'll depend on the terrain."

Nodding in the affirmative, Gourry opted to once again relish one of the changes from the last leg of the journey, "At least we're out of that desert, right?" Zelgadiss made an affirmative sound and Lina went back to eating. The food though was quickly gone and Lina moved the pan from between the two of them. "So when we get to the next…." Gourry stopped suddenly when he noticed that Lina now had her hand laid over Amelia's and was showing no inclination to move it.

He swallowed hard, "Uhhh… yeah-- how far was it to the next town again?" Lina grinned when she realized what he was passively staring it, still she decided to sound a little angry just to keep up the pretense of being forgotten for no reason.

"I just told you, almost three days!"

"Oh." Gourry tried again, "So we'll have to stock up on supplies, we're out of lamp oil too…"

Zelgadiss pulled out a piece of parchment, "Lamp oil.,.." Then put it away.

Lina stood up, pulling Amelia to her feet with her, their hands not parting. "Well, let's get going!" Starting toward her tent Lina pulled Amelia about half way, but she managed to keep step so it didn't look so forced before they parted ways to their respective tents half way.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

It was still at least two days journey until their group reached the next city but already Lina was looking forward to the brief respite. After the hellacious trip through the sandy wasteland and their all too brief rest in the previous town she was ready for another break. Mentally she belittled herself for such lazy thoughts, truth be told she loved the life on the road, if she didn't she had saved plenty of money to buy herself a decent house on a plot of land in any city she would have liked. And not have had to worry about money for the rest of her natural life. Then again, if she lived much longer than a natural life span she might have found herself in financial trouble.

Questioningly she turned her head to the side, she'd nearly forgotten that she had been holding Amelia's hand as the two of them walked until the princess had given a slight squeeze a moment before. With an impish smile Lina gave a light squeeze in return and continued walking, letting her mind wander again and letting her anticipation build for arrival at the next town. Before her thinking had the chance to settle again into the mundane though, she felt Amelia give a slight tug at her arm.

"What is it?" Lina asked without missing a step.

"You think it's too early to take a break?" Amelia asked letting her voice sound as worn as her legs felt tired.

Lina thought on it for a moment. Her legs were not aching, and she didn't feel winded in the slightest. Not to mention it was a beautiful day. And from their experience together she couldn't figure out how Amelia could be tired herself. She turned to her side to look Amelia over for a hint of fatigue and got a sly wink in response.

"Okay, this looks like a good spot to take a break." Lina said loud enough for the others to hear, causing Gourry and Zelgadiss to stop in their tracks.

Zelgadiss was quick to speak up, "It's a little early to rest, isn't it?"

Lina looked to the position of the sun in the sky, it was still well before noon and they had hardly been traveling long at all by normal standards. That meant the usual methods of defense whereby she chalked it up to differences between his chimerical endurance and human frailty wouldn't work. "Girl stuff." She called back curtly, bringing a blush to the patches of visible skin over his stone face.

She knew his reaction so Lina turned on her heel to catch a glimpse of his blushing features, loosing her hold on Amelia's hand in the process. She also managed to catch the shoulder shrug that Gourry responded with and smiled at the two of them. "So, let's take a break then and hopefully get going again around noon?"

Again Gourry shrugged his shoulders and she caught Zelgadiss muttering something about '…one delay after another…' under his breath as he turned off the path and took a seat on the ground nearby. A moment later Lina turned back to her newly close traveling companion.

"Come on, let's go do some girl stuff." Lina barely suppressed the laugh as she grabbed her friend's hand and lead her off the beaten path and into the woods. As she suspected both Gourry and Zelgadiss kept their distance which let Lina lead Amelia out of earshot of the two of them quickly.

"So, wha'd you want to talk about?" Lina asked, taking in Amelia's suddenly hesitant nature as she leaned with her back against a large oak with her eyes downcast.

"I just…" Amelia stalled and suddenly Lina felt her hand encircled by Amelia's. Amelia started out again stronger, "It's just, doesn't it feel almost like this is normal." She accentuated her point by squeezing her friend's hand.

"Yeah, it's almost a habit." Lina added with a laugh thinking about when she had woken up earlier in the day and cuddled tightly against the princess without thoughts of neither Zelgadiss or Gourry on her mind.

"I guess…" Amelia cut herself off, momentarily not wanting to take the conversation where she had been guiding it.

Noticing Amelia's indecisiveness Lina pounced on the princess, wrapping her in a hug and whispering hotly in her ear, "We'd better get back, we don't want Gourry and Zel to think we've taken our relationship to the _next_ level yet do you?" Despite the giggle and the obvious meaning of the statement Amelia found herself a little weak in the knees. Quickly she tired to turn her head to the side to keep her blushing hidden from the sorceress' view.

"Actually, with that blush it looks like you might want that." Lina noted with another laugh, turning away she missed the sudden shocked look on the princess' face, "Well, we'd better get back." She continued as she pulled the princess along with her back toward the road.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

"Oh, they're definitely buying it!" Lina laughed out, as she closed the door to their room. Although neither Zelgadiss nor Gourry had said anything, she knew the two of them were watching her with a critical eye. And she loved the attention, and the fact that they were going to come off looking like fools. Lina stopped her train of thought, looking around, the room wasn't as nice as the last room they had stayed in. The walls were wood, not stone, there was merely one window and it likely faced the side of a different building, and the floorboards creaked. Lina eyed the bed, smaller than she was used to, something that could comfortably fit one, but would be tight for two people. Nonetheless, it was, as always, a welcome treat from their travels on the road.

Meanwhile Amelia went over to the bed and took off the sheets, shaking them out and eyeing them for parasites. Finding nothing though she busied herself with making the bed yet again, "You know Lina, I think maybe it's about time to finish this." Lina smiled at the way Amelia let the words linger in the air, there was an uncommon bit of trickery in Amelia's voice that Lina had been growing more accustomed to in the last few days.

Still, Lina was in agreement, "Yeah, we'll have to set something up for tomorrow, then after they're completely convinced that we're a couple, surprise!" Lina threw her arms in the air showing just how surprised the two of them would be at the deception.

Tossing off her pack Lina crossed the small room closer to Amelia. Amelia turned to her in response, "So what are we going to do?" Amelia said, raising her eyebrow, her own little way of making the game racier.

Lina smiled, retaliating with a mock-sensual tone, "I don't know, I guess we'll have to figure something out princess…" Amelia giggled uproariously at the little nickname Lina had been using all day for her. Lina looked over to the bed, "So why are you making it again, we're just going to mess it up tonight."

Despite the honesty of the question Amelia responded in her newly discovered sexy voice, or at least her attempt at a sexy voice, "Oh… are we..?"

Lina rubbed the Princess' head, "Yeah, you're such a neat freak sometimes!" Amelia gave Lina a raspberry in response.

"It is a small bed though…" This comment coming from Amelia.

After looking it over Lina didn't really think it was that small, "We've been sleeping in more cramped quarters in your tent."

Thoughtfully Amelia had to admit the truth to that, "Hummm.. you've got a point." Lina hopped onto the bed, and laid out on it, rolling around a little, "You know, you've been getting better, not attacking me in your sleep."

Lina took it as a compliment, "I think it's because I've been sleeping better next to you, usually I toss and turn all night but after that first night of sleeping by you I've been falling right asleep… I guess I got used to you." Amelia blushed as Lina continued, "You know, you're like a little fire, when I get cold at night you're always warm and I just kind of snuggle in."

"Hey!" Amelia cried in mock anger, "You said you always ended up like that in your sleep!"

Employing a level of sweetness that might cause cavities in some, Lina tried to finesse her way out of Amelia's anger, "Well I can't help it, you're so warm, and soft…." Amelia's protest had been turned around and she was put into a corner where she was a bit nervous.

"Come on Lina-- get serious…" Lina could tell that she was fazing Amelia, her blush and stammering made it too obvious, and with her recent success with Gourry and Zelgadiss she was tempted to up the ante with Amelia as well. But Lina decided that if she didn't have a co-conspirator it wouldn't be half as fun, so she opted to just try and keep things honest between the two of them. "Anyway…" Amelia started out, trying to change the subject, "Let's go down and meet Gourry and Zelgadiss for dinner, you want to hold hands on the way down?"

Lina smiled widely as Amelia started to get into the act again, "Of course, they're expecting it by now, ne?"

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Throughout dinner Lina had been distracted by her thoughts of Amelia. What could she do to take it to the next level and really convince Gourry and Zelgadiss that there was something going on. It wasn't until both Lina and Amelia made it back to the bedroom though that Lina was struck by inspiration. She had just slipped off her traveling garb and was putting on her shirt to sleep in when she abruptly turned to Amelia, "I got it!"

For a moment Amelia was confused then she hopped on the bed, sitting down, "Okay, what is it?" She asked, a little anxious.

Lina cleared her throat for dramatic emphasis, "We kiss." She said simply.

"Ohhh…" Amelia started out sounding appreciative enough but the actual situation sunk in, "Oh." She said again, this time more sharply.

"Hummm?" Lina queried, wondering why Amelia wasn't taking to the idea.

"I-- well, we'd have to kiss." Amelia stuttered out.

"That's the point." Lina deadpanned.

Amelia could feel the blush start to come to her cheeks and her talking sped up in response, "It's just-- you and me… we couldn't.."

Lina leaned in smiling, "That's how they'll know we're not kidding around, but it can't be a quick peck, we have to sell it!" Lina finished with a flourish, ironically enough trying to sell the idea.

"I-- I guess… yeah!" Easily enough Amelia was swayed.

So Lina gave the coup de grace to her idea, "How about we practice, just one kiss to see how it goes?"

The climate of the room changed just as quick as Lina's idea came out. Just vocalizing the words had made Lina feel her own heart beat in her neck as she waited for Amelia's response. The words caused their own effect on Amelia as well, her position again switched back uncertainly as she thought of Lina's lips against hers. "On the lips?" Amelia managed out, swallowing dryly.

Lina nodded, "Uh huh.", trying not to let her nervousness slip through but still observably flustered. "So, should we?" Lina started to move in, awkwardly moving her face toward Amelia's. Their difference in height, Amelia on the bed and Lina standing, was not conducive towards their first kiss.

In response Amelia hefted herself up from the bed to stand next to Lina. Nearly the same height they started a movement toward each other, their eyes locked, and all thoughts of their prank were gone. Their lips touched, not a full on kiss, just grazing the sides. As they pulled away Amelia made a kissing noise despite the incompleteness. Now they were more motivated to get it right as the initial shyness faded. Amelia could still feel her heart beating hard in her chest, her thinking was becoming muddled. She licked her lips feeling not quite herself, "Lina… let's try again…" Lina nodded half confused as Amelia moved in and lifted her hands up and over Lina's shoulders, hooking them behind her neck and drawing in her face to meet hers. This time they did things right, their lips met perfectly. The softest parts pressing into one another spurred Amelia on and caused her to pull herself in tighter against Lina, motivating Lina to reach her hands behind Amelia's back, pulling against her as well.

They held each other like that, Amelia's grip slackening slowly, replaced however by Amelia rubbing her hands over Lina's shoulders as she continued to hold her close. There was even a moment when Lina realized she was forgetting to breath. And all at once she pushed away from Amelia, causing her to stumble back as Lina faugh for room. Trying to read the others emotions and too afraid to talk they stood there. "I…" Lina couldn't get out a word, she didn't feel confident enough to speak.

Amelia eventually managed a smile, "Won't Gourry and Zelgadiss be surprised by that?"

Lina could hardly force a laugh. "Maybe-- maybe we should just lay off them for a day or two. Just so we can catch them off guard later."

Amelia nodded hastily, dropping her momentary bravado, "Yeah, that's a great idea."

"Yeah... Yeah…" Then Lina raised her hands up over her head, "Then, I guess it's time to get some sleep." Lina suggested, attempting to force herself into her usual persona as she tossed herself into the bed and crawled beneath the covers. Moving to the farthest side of the small bed, barely hanging on the edge, Lina put the most distance between herself and Amelia. Amelia put out the light and crawled in the bed, sticking to her own side. "Good night Amelia."

In the darkness Lina listened, an uncomfortable silence settling in before she finally got her response, "Good night Lina."

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

The next day was full of disappointment. Nearly everything the group was in need of to continue their journey was either not to be found in the town, or was something shopkeepers only wanted to sell at tremendous markups. The prevailing story was that just a few days prior a large religious sect had made its way through the town on a pilgrimage and cleaned out nearly anything worthwhile for life on the road. To boot, Lina would have to wait at least three days before the shops had any supply from outside sources. Effectively they were stranded. It was the last town before the last portion of their journey and if might have to turn back sooner than expected, or at the least, not travel comfortably.

"Damn!" Lina kicked a barrel hard enough to jar the wooden planks loose and some of the liquid inside splashed out. "Why did this have to happen!" Again she kicked the barrel, this time more of the liquid sprayed out, spattering Lina but not causing her to care in the slightest. "I hate this stupid town!" She shouted to the sky. Meanwhile Zelgadiss, Gourry, and Amelia had taken cover around the corner of the building.

"I don't get why she's so upset.." Gourry mussed.

Zelgadiss for once seemed kind of irritated, "We've been traveling around looking for supplies since the sun came up, and in case you didn't notice it set about an hour ago. And now we're stuck here…"

Of course Gourry could remember the events of the day. The long exhausting day, Lina haggling with every shop keep they came across, trying to knock down their inflationary prices and failing to do so to any appreciable extent. But to be honest, Gourry was just a calm tempered individual, if he couldn't get something done today, there was always tomorrow, so overall he just wasn't fazed by it. Amelia turned as Zelgadiss tapped on her shoulder, as she turned he cupped his hand between his mouth and her ear to keep Gourry out of the conversation, "Why don't you try and calm Lina down.." Amelia and Zelgadiss huddled together a little away from Gourry.

"Why me?" Amelia sounded more then slightly afraid.

"Because, out of all of us, I think she's least likely to fireball you."

Honestly Amelia thought there would be more to the explanation than that, but the logic was sound, she nodded her head and headed toward Lina. "Lina…" Amelia called out cautiously as she approached the sorceress.

"Damn, damn, damn!" Lina cried out again and again, kicking the barrel with increasing ferocity. Amelia could tell Lina was angry over more than just her encounters with the merchants. She wouldn't get that angry over something so trivial, something was really bothering her.

"Lina, just calm down." Not garnering a response, Amelia continued to move in until she was within striking distance. Gingerly she reached out and put a comforting hand on Lina's shoulder, "You need to calm-"

Quickly, Lina turned and shoved Amelia away from her, winding her in the process. Nearly falling from the disorientation Amelia managed to look up, Lina's anger not cooled in the slightest, deadly serious Lina gave a warning, "Just leave me alone." Amelia's breath caught in her throat. She staggered back and fell onto her butt.

There was nothing at all Amelia could think to do. She hardened herself, steeled herself against anything she might have been feeling and stood up, heading out of the alley. "I tried." She managed as she passed Gourry and Zelgadiss, who were still watching from the end of the alleyway. "I'll be back at the hotel if you need me, I've got to get us rooms before they get run out of vacancies." Zelgadiss nodded and Amelia watched for a second as Gourry started walking up to Lina to give his abilities a try, however, knowing that it would end in tragedy Amelia turned away and sprinted off to the hotel.

On her way her feelings got the better of her. She was crying, at first she realized it from the coolness of the night air whisking away the tears as she ran. But she couldn't stop, her eyes burned and her throat felt tight, everything seemed wrong. She faltered a moment and her body threatened to lurch over onto the ground. Stopping she tried to look around her, but everything was blurred, the lights were a mess and her hands were barely discernable. "Lina…"

Sniffling loudly she could find no relief, and with no other choice she blew her nose in her hands, wiping them on the sides of her outfit. Nothing felt better, but after a few more moments she was sure she could go on. Still a long way from the hotel though she picked up her pace. Running… it had always made her feel better. She looked down, her feet steadily keeping pace and the ground rushing past them. There was something liberating about it, cleansing. She started to feel herself sweat and it pushed her on more.

Eventually Amelia arrived at the hotel. During the run her tears had dried and she regained her composure for the most part. Walking up to the counter she rang the bell for service, "Excuse me Sir, do you have three rooms open for the night?" He nodded in the affirmative and she gladly paid the man, reminding him who her roommates were (a little hard to forget) and instructed him to give a key to Lina and the other one to Gourry and Zelgadiss. Her task complete she headed up to her room, a bit of spring returning to her step.

Once in Amelia tossed herself on the bed. Laying there she took off her bracelets and tossed them on the ground, getting comfortable. Sighing lightly she rolled onto her side to face one of the two burning candles in the room. There is a quality to fire that seems to always draw one in, and Amelia found her self no more immune to it than most. The flickering fire, hues of red and gold, turning and tumbling onto itself, there was a kind of indescribable fascination with the flame.

There was silence too, not a total silence though, it was far from quiet. Downstairs the inn carried out its normal routine, bartering with businessmen, food being served in the kitchen, but still, those sounds were muted in the confines of the room. It took Amelia a moment to put a finger exactly on what was different; it wasn't a lack of noise, but a lack of presence. There was a tugging in her chest, tightness there she was trying to ignore. And as she watched the flame turn and twist, tiny rivets of wax making their way down the sides of the candle she found the only thing she could even think of was Lina.

The more Amelia tried to think about something else the more she could only think about her. It was a maddening process. The fire, the heat, the light, Lina. Red's and gold's… then there was Lina. It wasn't just the flame, they had shared a closeness over the last few days, and despite the guise of the affection, Amelia had grown more than accustomed to it. Holding hands and laughing, hugging… Amelia fought desperately to repress their kiss but couldn't. Passion, Amelia was passionate about justice, and everything in her life, and now she knew what it was like to feel passion over something else. Indescribable, a deep sensuous mix of chocolate and light. There was no discrete way to say it, passion was strong flavors, and heat, all of the senses firing at one in that all consuming moment. And now….. to feel it over a friend.

She pictured herself, her hands around Lina's back. Running them in circles, tangling her fingers in Lina's hair as they shared one another. Such an event, that such an event had happened, it was unreal.

It was wrong though…. So wrong… that's why it was going to be so funny when they convinced Gourry and Zelgadiss, because it was something that would never happen. Something completely impossible. Tears were flowing down Amelia's face so much more rapidly than the wax that was dripping down the candle. Amelia sniffled a little, and it suddenly became apparent how much time had passed when she heard clatter from the next room over, Gourry and Zelgadiss had found their room and were settling in.

Scraping and bangs, things were dropped off the two of them, armor, daggers, supplies and clothing. Amelia listened carefully, their room was between hers and Lina's and she strained to hear the slightest peep from the sorceress… nothing. Amelia sat up, wiping her eyes with her sleeve and trying to clear her nostrils. Letting her legs drop off the side of the bed to the floor she stood up stiffly. Stretching slightly, trying to let her mind wander off the subject it had held so firmly to for the last several minutes, before mentally prepping herself for any confrontation she would have with everyone else. With one last attempt to wipe her eyes dry, Amelia was ready to face everyone in the evening ahead.

Taking pains to open the door as silently as possible, Amelia peeked around the outside edge of the door and down the hall. The possibility of Lina simply standing there waiting for her being very real. But the hallway was empty. Walking outside she gently closed the door behind her and took a deep breath to steady her. She went to Gourry and Zelgadiss' door first, giving it three sharp knocks. Despite how she was feeling, dinner sounded awful good at the moment and she was hoping for the company of friends.

/\/\||/\/\-=End of Chapter 3=-/\/\||/\/\


	4. Chapter 4

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Chapter 4 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

.com

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

This is just one chapter of a multi-chapter fanfic, reading previous chapters is necessary to understand what is going on in the storyline (yes, despite the age restrictions there is a story line). Please visit the Slayers Hentai Fanfiction Archive (.com) to read previous and subsequent chapters.

*****************(Classic Snowflake Openings Rock!)*****************

**Chapter 4**

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Dinner had been terrible. Lina looked down at herself, disheveled, her legs damp from the pickle barrel she'd busted. She sighed heavily. She'd made such as ass of herself and worst of all she knew it. She tried to justify it, how could she help herself when she'd been so angry? But it didn't help. Her heart sunk when she thought of Amelia, it had been a low blow, almost a reflex to sucker punch her friend. But after Amelia left Lina had come back to herself quickly. She wasn't sure if that had been a good thing though. It had just been a prelude to dinner, bouts of silence punctuated by uncomfortable stares and general awkward feelings that she wasn't used to. Especially around her friends.

She hadn't hardly been able to glance at Amelia. Maybe it was that Amelia wouldn't move her eyes to give her a chance, every time she tried to look that way she realized Amelia was already watching her, and Lina just couldn't let their eyes meet. For the umpteenth time that day she had to pound her head in frustration, "When did everything get so messed up." She groaned out, not caring if anyone heard her. She broke from her thoughts and stomped over to the bed and dropped her rump on it, pulling off her boots and letting them drop noisily to the floor, not in the mood to get them cleaned tonight. She kicked off her smelly pants, her wrinkly skin on her lower legs a testament to the curing effects of the brine. Pungent best described it.

Still, it was just a momentary distraction. She blew out the candle and rolled into the bed, pulling the covers over her slender frame. The outside sounds had dwindled. It was late and most sensible people were asleep. Sleep was apparently not an option for Lina though. She rolled one way, then the other, tried a pillow between her legs and under her head, bunched her covers around her, just to overheat and throw them off. Finally, she found some comfort holding a pillow close to her chest and snuggling into it. Soft, eventually her body warmed the pillow, and she started to drift off to sleep.

It was that moment though, between sleep and wakefulness that Lina muttered out, "G'night Amelia…" She backed away, she was indeed hugging a pillow, not Amelia. Reality took a moment to assert itself. And when it did, there came an overwhelming loneliness. Lina swallowed hard. She grabbed the pillow up again, holding it tightly. Her eyes burned but she couldn't pinpoint why, instead she just gripped the pillow tighter against her chest as she finally drifted off to sleep.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

Turning fluidly at the end of the hall, Zelgadiss continued his pacing. It was nearly noon, and despite the fact that they had their rooms for the next few days, everyone should have been up to something by now. He stopped at Lina's door and watched it for a moment, willing it to open, or at least to hear some activity on the other side. Hearing nothing he turned yet again and walked his way down to Amelia's room, repeating the process. Gourry had meanwhile gone to find something to do at Zelgadiss' insistence. He was just happy to get him out of the hotel though; Gourry was driving him crazy with his constant theories and insistence to wake the girls up.

In all seriousness, Zelgadiss was completely convinced there was something going on between Lina and Amelia, however to give Gourry authority would just inspire him to come up with even more far fetched scenarios and to spend even more of his time devoted towards proving some fantastical situation. Meanwhile, Lina laid motionless on her bed, there was no motivation. Eventually she did get up, using the simple vanity in her room she washed her face and toweled it dry. Prepping herself for whatever her encounter with Zel might bring. She could pick out Zelgadiss' footsteps any day, and he'd been pacing outside of her room for an hour.

Boldly, Lina threw the door open just as Zel was making his rounds past her room, nearly catching him and causing him to loose his balance. He caught himself at the last moment with his hand against the wall and growled, looking right at Lina. "If you knew I was there, you didn't have to try and hit me with the door!"

Lina gave a little grin despite herself, "And how would I know you were there Zel?"

Grumbling, Zelgadiss pushed himself upright, "I sent Gourry out a little while ago, I couldn't tell if he was more worried about you, or worried about satisfying his curiosity, so I got rid of him."

Lina didn't miss the part about satisfying his _curiosity_, but continued on as planned, "Why didn't you just wake me up?" Lina said slyly, putting some blame on Zelgadiss.

He shook his head, "You've been up for hours, you think I can't hear with these ears?" He motioned to his ears and took her surprised look as a confirmation of his theory, "You at least turn in your sleep you know, but you've been laying there still for awhile now…" Lina huffed and looked down at her feet embarrassed. "Nevertheless Lina, don't you think we should head out soon and get something done so today isn't a total waste." Giving an affirmative nod, Lina tried to hide the fact that she was starring down the hall towards Amelia's room.

Off handedly she asked, "Is Amelia up yet?"

Zelgadiss shook his head, "No, she's still in her bedroom."

Grinning, Lina continued, deciding to give Zelgadiss' hidden talent a little use, "And is she awake in there…?" But he wasn't game.

"You'll have to find out for yourself, I'll be down stairs." And deciding to give the two of them some space, Zelgadiss wandered off. Lina turned down the hallway to where Amelia's room was. She hadn't seen her go in there, but the innkeeper told her that it was just next to Gourry and Zel's room.

Breathing in deeply and pushing out her chest she feigned confidence and traveled the short distance between the rooms. With bold purpose in mind she knocked soundly on Amelia's door, waiting for a response. Then, knocked again. Waiting… with each passing moment though Lina got terribly more anxious. "Amelia!" Lina called out, raping on the door yet again, to be met with no response. Rapidly though it became evident to Lina that she was being ignored -shut out- "Amelia…." She whispered, resting her head against the doorframe. After a moments hesitation Lina stood up tall and walked downstairs to meet with Zelgadiss

Just inches from the door on the other side Amelia crumpled onto the floor. She had wanted so badly to open it, just to see Lina again. But Lina had given up on her, she hadn't tried enough to make things right, just her usual token effort, then…. Gone. Gave up. Amelia was hoping for something different, she wanted Lina to pound on the door, to proclaim that she wouldn't be happy until she got Amelia out of her room, the kind of passion Lina had for everything else. Amelia let her arm drop to her side listlessly, renewing her mental resolve to not come out of her room until Lina came in to get her.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Another uneventful day, and Lina was beginning to appreciate just how backwoods this town was. Really they were some distance from any neighbors at this little outpost of civilization and things were beginning to show that they were not as civilized as she had initially thought. Still, the day was winding down. Lina ascended the stairs and put her hands to the knob of her door, stopping just short of touching it. Her hand hovering there for a minute she turned her head ever so slightly toward Amelia's side of the hallway. She hadn't seen her all day, but she knew that she was in there, overreacting as usual.

Lina sighed, turning the knob of her door and stepped in. In one motion she swung the door shut behind her as she stepped in, unclasping her shoulder guards and tossing off her cape with a thud. "Well, better see what the little brat is up to." Despite the fact that she only had the slightest edge over Amelia in age, there was that sense that she had years over her in terms of mental maturity. Lina grinned. She knew that it must have been evident for Amelia when they first met, calling her 'Miss. Lina' for the longest time.

Their relationship though had developed beyond that, years on and off the road together had dropped down some of those walls they had for each other, but there was still a respect there. Lina knew she didn't act it, but she had always tried to guide Amelia, as any leader tries to guide a follower, wanted or not. That comfortable barrier though was gone, Lina could tell Amelia had been maturing. That was made all the more evident by Amelia's belated blossoming into womanhood some days ago. Thoughts of the past brought the slightest of smiles to Lina's face, but it was hard for Lina to pinpoint a certain event to any specific time period of her life. Except the big ones, things had all blended together.

Walking over to the window Lina undid the hook and pushed it open. The musty room felt all the more livable with the faintest breeze making its way through the quarters. She breathed deeply, putting one foot on the ledge, "_Levitation_." Pushing out the rest of the way through the window Lina hovered there, edging foreword slightly, then allowed herself to drop down, somewhere between the second and first floor windows. Lina trailed along the side of the building in the fading light for a moment, gracefully covering the space between her window and Amelia's. Finally Lina raised herself up once more, hovering directly in front of Amelia's windowsill.

She was awake. Lina eyed the lit candles, cutting through the darkness and scanned the room for Amelia's presence. Suddenly the window in front of her flung open. The glass panes opening with such force that they struck the building strongly, jarring the glass and causing Lina to 'Eep!' and put some reflexive distance between the window and herself. Amelia stood up slowly from beneath the window frame, "Did I get you?"

Lina huffed in response, the obviously playful smirk on Amelia's face cutting through the nervousness she was feeling, "Pthhh." Lina lazily stuck out her tongue, "Like you could scare me that easy!"

Tilting her head, Amelia brought her hand up to her head thoughtfully, "Humm … you looked scared."

Finally the smile Lina had been trying to hold in cracked, "Anyway, how about you let me come in for a minute." Without much fanfare Amelia stepped to the side to allow Lina entry and sat down on the bed as Lina floated in. It was slightly difficult to get through the cramped window frame but eventually Lina was back on her own two feet.

"You know you cheated." Surprised, Lina looked at Amelia's pouting face, countering with her own confusion, "You were supposed to pound on the door until I let you in…"

Still playful Lina retorted, "Well, I didn't want to make a scene."

Playfulness aside Amelia continued, "But, you're always making a scene, how would it be any different?" Lina felt the change in Amelia's demeanor, quickly trying to analyze her mood and figure out the best way to diffuse whatever situation she had created for herself.

"Listen, I just didn't want a big fuss…"

Amelia stood up, "You didn't see me all day, didn't you worry about me?"

Lina didn't have to hear Amelia's voice raise to know she was starting to get irritated, "I was worried, but I knew you were okay, I just thought you needed some time to cool off." Amelia shook her head side to side.

"That's not what I meant, if it were anyone else you would have dragged them out of this room kicking and screaming if they ignored you all day."

Any point Amelia was trying to make was lost on Lina, going for clarification Lina scrunched up her forehead in thought, "But I did come over, I'm here right now." Again Amelia sat down on the bed, more throwing herself down on it. She ran her hands over her face roughly, agitated and almost growling a little, and closing her eyes she again found her voice,

"Lina… remember when we first started traveling with Mr. Zelgadiss." There was something different to the way Amelia was talking, and Lina found it poignant that Amelia had reverted to calling him 'Mr.' again.

"Yeah." Lina responded, almost irritated at the change of conversation but deciding that maybe she had better listen to Amelia.

Nodding Amelia continued, "When we first started traveling together-- I had a crush on him."

Lina smiled, "Like I didn't know that."

Amelia blushed at the reply but kept going, "He just… I felt like I could know him my whole life and never know everything, he seemed so deep and serious and-- he was strong." Lina didn't cut in as Amelia continued to gush over Zelgadiss, "I-- I thought I would end up marrying him; I used to go over it in my head, a huge wedding in Saillune, Daddy and everyone there, and you too. Every time we parted ways I knew he would come back to me." The confidence that Amelia had been developing though as she spoke started to fall away all at once, and Lina was shocked as her demeanor started to fall apart, "But…" It was a big but, and Lina could sense Amelia was about to turn to a less promising matter, "Awhile ago Zelgadiss started pulling away from me. He was more distant and less… caring than before." Amelia nearly choked out the last bit as her throat started to tighten up.

Gulping from the sudden outpouring of emotions, good and bad, Lina waited for Amelia to continue, "Then I realized that he never cared. He just put up with meeee…" Amelia sniffled hard as she squeaked out the last bit, but she kept her eyes closed, rubbing some tears away from her eyes. "I guess it gets that way, when you stay on the road for so long-- I mean… I know I don't have a personality that everyone can tolerate." Lina nodded slightly and gave a short amused snort despite how depressed Amelia's spiel was making her, Amelia though took that as her cue to continue, "I -- a lot of people have put up with me over the years. I'm a princess, they have to, but for-- for Zelgadiss to do that… I just wanted to die when I realized how fake everything had been. How I'd been fooling myself."

Turning carefully Lina sat down on the corner of the bed away from Amelia, putting her hand on the princess' leg and silently hoping that Zelgadiss could hear everything from the next room. Amelia in turn wiped her eyes and propped herself up on her elbows so she could see Lina. "I haven't been the same since then. It's an act -- I just pretend like it never happened, like I was never a selfish delusional princess that fell in love with a man that didn't love her back." Amelia finished, the sentence wrenched fourth from her painfully, something she had never admitted to herself, let alone aloud. Although on some level irritated with Amelia's, for the most part Lina found herself utterly shocked at how she'd been oblivious to Amelia's depression.

"I always thought of you like a sister…" Amelia finally admitted after finding her strength, "In these last few days… when we were acting like we were a couple…"

Trying hard to find her voice, Lina managed out, "Yeah.." But her words were dry, hardly making it through her tight throat.

Amelia swallowed hard and propped herself upright more, "I was happy.." Amelia was shaking now and Lina wanted to do something, but resisted, not knowing how to comfort the princess. Amelia though sniffled some more and regained the bulk of her composure, "After we kissed though…" Amelia paused and Lina was forced to hold her breath as Amelia regained herself.

"That kiss made me realize … I …" Amelia paused for a moment, "… you mean a lot more to me than a sister…" Lina let out the breath she had been holding, moving in slightly.

"Amelia-- I.."

"I think…" Amelia interrupted, testing her voice, "I think we should try that kiss again, just so I can be sure what it means." She almost sounded sure of herself.

Amelia's eyes… that spark was back Lina noticed. With no ready reason to protest Lina muttered, "Yeah… I don't think we've figured it out yet…." Moving in slowly, inching along the bed Lina closed in on Amelia, meanwhile Amelia had dropped foreword on her hands and knees to meet Lina in the middle of the bed. Again, hesitation at the last minute… they both stop, their lips so close they can feel the heat coming off one another. Then, in unison they both move foreword. The kiss, was ill aimed though, their lips hardly connecting, and it was shallow, both of them being too reserved to go through with it. Lina backed off, "We need to try again…"

Both of them embarrassed, but in a good way, Amelia managed out a, "Yes.." And again they meet lips, Lina swinging her legs up onto the bed, to reposition herself to embrace Amelia.

They held that position for a few moments, then moved back slightly, only to move foreword again and meet all the more intimately. Lina moaned out softly as Amelia moved her hands behind her back, pulling the two of them together. Again though they broke their contact, Lina backing up, just enough so that her hot breath serenaded Amelia's cheeks, "This is wrong…" She managed out, going in again for another kiss, finally starting to get the hang of it. Lina lifted up slightly, putting Amelia in a more submissive position, now putting her arms around Amelia's back as well.

This time Amelia pulled back, "Why..?" Again going in for a kiss Amelia tilted her body to the side, causing Lina to topple over on her side, their lips not parting on the short way down.

"I just…" Lina sounded more than a little unsure of herself as she continued, "We shouldn't be doing this…" She finished in a whisper, pushing away Amelia feebly.

"What's wrong?" Amelia barely got out, her throat tightening and her initial happiness fading faster than she would have ever thought possible. Amelia could see the change in Lina's eyes though, and as they made contact Lina faked a smile and turned away sharply, her eyes focused on the window. Amelia propped herself up more fully on her arms ready to take some kind of action. In response, Lina swung her legs over the edge of the bed, all signs that things were going right quickly dropped away. Clearing her throat Amelia stepped onto the ground on the side of the bed and walked over to Lina, "What happened… what'd I do wrong.."

Lina shook her head, "You didn't do anything wrong Amelia… I just… this…" Lina paused, letting the entirety of her comment sink in, "This shouldn't have happened…" Amelia made her way over to Lina, trying not to spook the sorceress into fleeing.

"Lina… I…" Amelia put her hand on Lina's shoulder but Lina cut her off.

"I'm gonna head back to my room, see you tomorrow Amelia." She finished flashing an imitation of a smile and climbed off the bed to the window, giving Amelia one last look before pushing it open and taking flight back to her room.

Gliding gently out of the window, Lina steadied her flight and looped around to her window, gracefully swinging in legs first and planting herself firmly on the hardwood. Carefully she removed her silver bracelets, and now able, pulled off her gloves, dropping them to the ground. Holding in tears, she padded her way over to the bed, tossing back the covers and snuggling in. She took the pillow from under her head and put it under the covers with her. With it held tightly against her chest she bunching up some of the covers with it to make a more massive object to hold in her arms. "Why can't anything be simple…" Was as much as she could get out before she buried her face in the pillow, wracked by a sudden overwhelming disastrous emotion.

/\/\||/\/\-=End of Chapter 4=-/\/\||/\/\


	5. Chapter 5

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Chapter 5 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

.com

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

This is just one chapter of a multi-chapter fanfic, reading previous chapters is necessary to understand what is going on in the storyline (yes, despite the age restrictions there is a story line). Please visit the Slayers Hentai Fanfiction Archive (.com) to read previous and subsequent chapters.

*****************(Classic Snowflake Openings Rock!)*****************

**Chapter 5**

Hearing something, Lina sat up slightly in her bed, wondering how long she had been sleeping. She was quick to realize that the source of the disturbance was the princess she had left only a moment earlier. Lina tried to compose herself before getting up for the window. There was something about the way Amelia looked however with her cape flapping in the wind. The moonlight silhouetted her from behind, but also reflected off the window pane and illumined her features from the front as well. And there was also a familiar sparkle to Amelia's eyes that Lina was no longer used to seeing.

Quickly, Lina moved foreword and unhooked the window clasp. Amelia immediately took up the offer and pushed open the window pane, expertly landing inside. Lina looked over Amelia's highlighted features, particularly her nearly-glowing hair. "Amelia… I..." Lina could feel something pulling at her vocal cords so tried again, "What are you doing here…" Lina finally got out breathlessly, finding herself for the first time taken with Amelia's appearance.

Gathering her courage, and feeling justified, Amelia decided on the direct approach, "I just can't sleep without you nearby…" Amelia looked at Lina hopefully. Lina in turn let her eyes wander to the bed, the pillow she had been holding so tightly lay next to her depression in the mattress, she too had been having trouble sleeping alone.

"It's just… I--" Lina tried again, but each time she couldn't muster the feelings she needed to kick Amelia out. She wanted Amelia to stay, but the way she was feeling, her nipples hardening against her shirt. Rather than face it, she really just wanted her to leave. Lina took another deep breath of the intoxicating night air, fresh and woodsy from the surrounding countryside, she tried to calm her mind and block out the heavy aroma of lamp oil and soot in the air.

Sensing Lina's indecision, Amelia brazenly flipped her head to the side, parting her hair and walked past Lina to the bed. Without pause she crawled beneath the covers and gave Lina a somewhat daring look. "Just- let's not worry about it. Let's just pretend it's like it was before." Amelia trailed off, as Lina sat heavily near the vanity eyeing Amelia. She was still trying to find some excuse she could use to kick the princess out for the night and let herself seethe in the meantime.

Amelia though had managed to coax a slight smile to her lips as she laid back fully into the bed, lifting her midsection. It took Lina a moment in the moon light before she was able to figure out that Amelia was fumbling with her pants. Then, she saw them get pushed out from beneath the covers to the foot of the bed. Then, Lina's heart nearly skipped a beat as Amelia started taking off her shirt. This was a first, before the two of them had always slept together modestly, it was enough to force Lina to some action.

"Why do you need to take off your shirt?" Lina asked, masking her panic with a calm exterior.

"So I don't overheat next to you." Amelia answered fluidly, lifting her shirt up and over her head.

"Are you sure you need to do that?" Lina asked, her voice raising in pitch.

"Why?" She asked so innocently, but Lina knew better. That just a short time ago she was nearly seduced by the girl in her bed. As soon as the word came to her head she knew it was exactly what had happened. She'd been seduced by power, and by money, but this was a whole new kind of seduction. And in some ways that made it easier to deny, not knowing exactly what it was she was fighting against. Not knowing what giving into that temptation might feel like.

But it also made it all the more difficult.

Amelia absently lifted her arm from beneath the covers, putting it behind her head. In the process she tossed up the edge of the blanket, which exposed her naked chest. "Eh!" Lina squeaked out, immediately trying to cover for the unexpected noise. Valiantly, Lina made another attempt at conversation, feeling a slight trembling in her unsteady feet as she began tapping one of them against the leg of the chair. "So, I guess we'll be heading out tomorrow night, or the day after then. That is if these shops finally get some supplies." Lina laughed, but it was completely superficial.

"Yeah, hopefully." Amelia responded, sounding tired before rolling more towards Lina, drawing her chest into an even sharper contrast.

Lina's thoughts drifted further away from the conversation she was fighting to keep going. She forced herself to concentrate, "Yeah… okay." Then berated herself for such a nonsensical response. The sheet had shifted down even further, the faintest of details now coming to Lina's eyes. All at once, her brain started to scramble. She thought of guys, penetration, she didn't know much about sex, but she had basics that most everyone knew. What could she do? In Lina's mind, unless it was rape, sex was something two people who loved each other did.

She didn't love Amelia. Granted she felt closer to the princess as of late, but what she was feeling now, it wasn't. Couldn't be love. She was in such a fit she felt like she could spring on almost any attractive person in front of her. Such thoughts were not helpful at the moment. It was her frustration and visible embarrassment that caught Amelia's attention and caused her to follow Lina's line of sight.

"What are you looking at?" Amelia asked in a chiding voice, Lina couldn't tell if the innocence was an act or honest ignorance of what she was doing.

"Nothing!" Lina covered quickly with the first thing that came to her mind, but the absurdity of it caused Amelia to giggle. Suddenly Lina struggled anew, wondering how her mind had ever fallen so low, convincing herself that she had never even found another girl attractive before and that something must be amiss for her to be thinking of such things. And just like that, Amelia made her move. Pushing up from the bed, her sheet falling away entirely she got to her feet. In the back of Lina's mind she noticed that Amelia was still wearing her panties, but that wasn't where she was paying the most attention. Lina's attempts at speaking were useless, she could only mange the faintest sounds that proved she was trying. Finally Amelia closed the gap between herself and Lina, the two of them meeting lips in the middle.

The kiss was a bit too dainty for the situation but Amelia pulled away breathing heavily, "Don't you still like my boobies?" Amelia blushed, trying to push Lina further with an attempt at a deeper voice.

Embarrassed, Lina turned away for a moment to hide the bulk of her blush, "Who ever said that…?" She hardly whispered out realizing the truth to it but alarmed at Amelia's uncharacteristic forwardness. Amelia giggled and took a few steps back to sit back down on the bed.

The first few words were lost on Lina before she forced herself back into the conversation, "… and you're always looking at them."

Perking back up, Lina retaliated, "I was always looking at your boobs because I was jealous…" Lina seethed, happy to force her mind to the comfort of irritation.

Amelia continued pushing her, "Oh, but why would you be jealous of these?" Amelia gave them a slight push together causing Lina to gulp. But as Lina tried to keep up with the conversation she found herself loosing interest. Her eyes continually taken back to Amelia's ample chest. She cursed herself, wondering how, in all of her life she had never heard of an instance where two girls had gotten together and… just the thought made her blush, and for a moment she had to wonder if there some magical element to the whole situation that would be lacking between two females. Something that would make the act itself impossible, aside from the obvious.

Lina struggled. She tried to fight it like any other mind control, through sheer force of will. She reasoned that the kind of thoughts she was having wouldn't have even entered her mind otherwise. That she wouldn't be struggling to come up with some ploy to let herself get naked and meet Amelia in the bed either. She wouldn't be going over the possible consequences and damning each one in turn otherwise. Lina breathed heavily, shakily and reached down to the bottom of her shirt, pulling it off and over her head in one fluid movement. She could tell from the look on the princess' face that she was shocked. She should have known better.

"Lina… what are you?" Amelia trailed off, loosing the dominant aura she had amassed.

"What do you want me to do?" Lina asked, her own voice husky, though from no intentional effort of her own. She'd wanted to give in so badly, and now she just wanted Amelia to tell her it was okay to let go. And to let Amelia do whatever she wanted to her. In that spirit, Lina stood from the chair and unceremoniously dropped her pants to around her ankles, walking out of them. But with no response forthcoming from Amelia, Lina took the lead, "Maybe you should finish getting naked." Lina swallowed hard, but if she thought she felt anticipation before, it was nothing compared to the encompassing, powerful feeling she got when Amelia wordlessly pushed her panties down.

Lina pressed on further. Moving in she dropped to her knees, putting herself between Amelia's legs. She took a moment to look up to Amelia, but either through embarrassment or some other emotion she couldn't meet Lina's eyes and looked away. The anticipation was too much, shakily Lina took her thumb and index finger and reached out, pushing apart the flesh there, opening Amelia up. She looked over the slick folds, faint details visible in the slight reflectance of the fluid there. Open before her, Lina found herself at a loss over what to do. Trembling with unfirmilar excitement Lina forced a laugh. Amelia, who had been looking away, her eyes closed and trembling slightly, tilted her head to see what the sorceress found funny, "You wouldn't happen to know what to do, would you?"

Amelia swallowed hard, "I- I'm a little scared…" She said shakily.

Lina nodded, "Yeah-- me too." Lina felt her heart pounding in her chest, and the heat from the room felt almost unbearable on her naked skin. Trembling and breathing in shallow pulses she pushed herself to her feet, leaning in and kissing Amelia on the lips, running her tongue along them slightly before shuddering and pulling away.

"Maybe… we should t-try this on the bed." Amelia got out in uneven tones. Lina nodded and pushed Amelia against the mattress. "What.. what are we going to do…?" Amelia managed, her voice just above a whisper. There was an innocence there that Lina hadn't expected from her previous advances. Still, she was just as innocent as the girl beneath her. Before she could form a reply Amelia expounded on her question, "I-I mean, with a guy and a girl… but.. two girls..."

"Amelia…," Lina started, she wanted to say something inspiring, something romantic, something that would convince Amelia everything was all right and spur her into action. But she didn't feel up to the lie, , ".. with the way I feel right now, there has to be something we can do. Otherwise I'm going to go crazy."

Nodding with a bit of worry Amelia tried to get herself situated on the bed as Lina moved to unclasp her own bra. Lina looked down over her body. Letting herself be guided by lust, Lina reached around her back and unclasped her bra, pushing the straps over her shoulders and letting it drop to the ground before reaching back up to cover herself with her hands.

Things moved fast from there. So as to keep Amelia's eyes from lingering on her too long Lina made a move for the bed. Picking up one of the corners of the blanket and getting underneath it. The room itself was lit by the streaming moonlight but where the two of them were at the far edge of the room, it was nearly dark.

Lina preferred it that way. Her hands soon found their mark over Amelia's breasts. She gave in completely to impulses she had denied for years, something she had wanted to do before even without perverted connotations. Gently pinching Amelia's nipples, squeezing them. Soon she had moved in, kissing the princess hard on the lips. Lina's hands were trembling, she moved one of her hands behind Amelia's back and pulled her closer, mashing their chests and naked flesh together, feeling her heat penetrate her being. "Oh.." Amelia gasped in her ear after a particularly passionate kiss. Lina wanted to say something but she couldn't think of the words, instead she just pulled herself tighter against Amelia.

Since there wasn't much light to see by, Amelia didn't keep her eyes open. Instead she just focused on the sensations. It was like suffocating - but in a good way, being completely in another's power. Lina started moving the kisses further down her face and along her jaw line causing her to shudder. Amelia pressed herself into Lina harder, hoping she would realize she wanted more of everything. To push things along, Amelia put her hands behind Lina's back, pressing them against her shoulders and moving them down her body, settling on her butt. She gave it a tight squeeze causing Lina to grunt deeply and intensify her kiss. The feeling of skin against skin, Amelia continued to rub her hands all over Lina's back, heady from the feeling of it.

Lina responded in kind to the attention, grabbing Amelia's butt and pulling herself against the princess. Still, as much as she liked what Amelia was doing, it wasn't enough. The initial satisfaction Lina had felt for throwing herself naked into a bed with Amelia was satisfied, but now she burned more deeply.

She started moving herself downward. After a moment Amelia realized Lina's intentions and slackened her grip but didn't move her hands away, instead settling them in Lina's hair as Lina brought her head up against Amelia's breast. A moment later Lina took one of Amelia's nipples in her mouth. It was a whole new experience; Lina felt the small bumps and details of Amelia's nipple with her tongue. She wasn't exactly sure what to do and timidly she closed her teeth on Amelia's nipple, seeing if that would illicit a response. Amelia tensed up and Lina continued with soft nibbling, alternating between taking the whole of the nipple into her mouth and licking it. Slowly the nipple in her mouth began to harden under her attention, as did the one she was rolling between her fingers. Lina pulled back, licking her lips, hearing her heart pounding in her head before moving back in. Finally Amelia's response moved past the automatic response of her body. Lina could feel the change in Amelia's breathing as she submitted to the attention.

"La-Lina… that feels good…" Amelia brought her leg up, pinning Lina's leg in-between her own. Then, she started to move her hips tight against it. The movement was natural, and without realizing it Lina started to pick up on it too. Each of them with the other's leg held tightly between their legs, tightly pressed against their sex. Lina kept up her ministrations of Amelia's nipples, but it was difficult, the movement of her hips, and the movement of her lips and hands, it was taking all of her concentration, her mouth would stop moving, or her fingers, or her hips, and she would suddenly realize and have to put her mind back into things, keeping everything in motion.

It was destined to fail. Amelia rolled over more, causing Lina to roll with her onto her back, Amelia now on top. Suddenly pulled back to reality, Lina was shocked at how far things had gone. Amelia bucking against her leg, she could feel Amelia's wetness against her as a distinct spot of warmth that slid back and forth tightly. As she took in Amelia's form in the moonlight, a slight sheen of sweat over her body, her nipples poking out in front of her as her chest heaved and her breasts swung, she suddenly realized she too was likewise bucking her own hips against her lover. She felt the fabric she was still wearing, her skimpy panties as the last barrier between her and Amelia. They were wet with her arousal, but the cloth there gave a unique sensation as she rocked her hips.

Building, Lina didn't know what the feeling was at first. It started off as a numbness spreading from inside of her. But to compliment it, there was a heat consuming her from the outside. Warring hot and cold, her breath forced in and out as she screwed her eyes shut. She felt Amelia tighten her grip with her legs, her longer movements suddenly reduced to quick little pivots against Lina's leg, then… "Lina… Lina…. Ohhh…. Ohhhh!" She croaked out something more, 19 years of sexual repression coming to a head as the tightness around Lina's leg passed the uncomfortable zone, going to downright painful. Both of them held still for a moment before Amelia dropped down off her hands and fully onto the bed, their legs still tangled together.

"What happened?" Lina got out winded. Amelia stirred, not fully incapacitated yet.

"I.. I just…" Amelia dropped down off Lina and into the bed more, if it was possible, "It was incredible…" She muttered out, her face covered by the pillow. Amelia rolled a little to the side, lifting her leg from between Lina's now loosened legs. A wet stickiness suddenly made itself apparent as they separated. All down Lina's leg she felt the dampness in the cool night air, and there was something else, numbness there from the repetitive motion of Amelia on her leg. Lina reached down, she was hot, unnaturally hot between her legs, and her panties were soaked through.

"Hey, what about me!" Lina cried, realizing her chance at the feelings Amelia had experienced was rapidly passing. Amelia batted her hand at Lina and mumbled something unintelligible. "You can't just roll over and go to sleep!" Lina sat upright and turned toward Amelia, putting her hands on the princess' shoulders and shaking her into the bed.

Amelia lazily rolled over, "I wasn't sleeping… suppose" She managed out blearily.

"My dead ass! You were just going to pass out on the bed!"

Amelia smiled at having been found out, "But it was just soooo goooood…" Amelia giggled out, spurring Lina on.

"Yeah, yeah… it was good, until you stopped!"

There was playfulness to her tone though, Amelia caught on quickly that she wasn't honestly angry. "It was better than that… it was-- magical…" Amelia trailed off, still feeling a bit of the glow, and rolled over, putting her arm over Lina. She opened her eyes, and ran her hand delicately over Lina's chest. Inside her already, that strange mixture of arousal and wanting started to bring itself to the forefront again, something she had never felt before this night. It was something new. Something… Amelia put her hand over one of Lina's breasts and gave it a squeeze. Then, thinking back to what Lina did earlier, Amelia moved her head up to Lina's breast, licking it around the base, causing Lina's anticipation to boil before Amelia took the nipple in her mouth. Unlike Amelia, who didn't respond much to the attention initially, Lina immediately greeted the suckling with an unthinking moan. Instead of bringing her hand up to Lina's other breast though, Amelia brought it down between Lina's legs.

Amelia pulled away for a moment, feeling the need to explain herself, "There's something down here…" Amelia weaseled her fingers beneath the sting holding up Lina's panties where her fingers promptly encountered Lina's wetness. "Tell me when you feel it…" Amelia ran her finger through Lina's sparse hair and followed her lower lips bottom to top. Putting more force on her finger, it pressed into the lips slightly.

Pulled through the slickness Lina shivered, "When I feel what?" She asked, slightly breathy. Amelia didn't respond, continuing her motion. Finger moving end to end between Lina's folds. There was anticipation there, and it started to grow and caught Lina's breath in her throat. She wanted Amelia to press deeper, but couldn't bring herself to ask. "Oh!" Lina made the sound from deep within her throat, not at all intentional. Amelia smiled with her teeth lightly holding Lina's nipple and repeated the movement. Pulling her finger to the upper edge of Lina's slickness and rubbing it there. She felt it, a difference in the velvetiness, a small little bump beneath the skin.

"L-sama!" Lina cried out, gripping the sheets. Amelia immediately stopped, not quite sure about that reaction. It was definitely not a name she usually heard from Lina. "Don't stop…" Lina hissed out. The command quickly prompted Amelia to continue her actions. She again took the nipple into her mouth, turning her head slightly so she could try to make out Lina's face in the light. The details though were hidden, she couldn't even tell if Lina was enjoying it, but she knew she was going to keep up if it brought Lina the kind of pleasure she'd felt earlier. When she had shifted positions earlier atop Lina, something had just.. it had rubbed just right… and it was something she was hoping to be rubbing on Lina right now.

Lina managed to get her death grip off the bed and moved one of her hands into Amelia's hair, kneading her head as she continued to suck on her nipple. "Oh!" Lina drew in a breath, but she didn't let it back out. Amelia picked up the pace, driving her finger further down Lina's slit, coating it with her juices before bringing it back, rubbing tightly over the whole sensitive area. She felt Lina tense, arching her back. "Oh gods!" Lina cried out, starting to force the air from her lungs. As she did, her body started to gradually fall back toward the bed, Lina suddenly grabbing Amelia's hand, breathing out, "It-it's too much…" Pulling Amelia's hand away from her delicate regions.

Closing her eyes, Lina felt her muscles go slack. Just like that she felt the heat that had been accumulating drain from her body. She took a deep breath, incredibly relaxed, a hair's berth from sleep. Amelia had been right, it was magical. Then she realized she was moving. Or… more accurately, something was moving next to her. Letting out a angry groan Lina forced one of her eyes open. She managed, after some time, to turn her head to the side ever so slightly. The new vantage point allowing her to take in Amelia's expression.

To Lina it looked as if Amelia might have been trying to extract herself from the bed. So in response she starred her down with all of her might, threatening violence should the princess actually succeed and break free of the comfort (and disturb Lina's own in the process). All thoughts of leaving disappeared and Amelia laid back down. Finally seeing Amelia give up on her treasonous thought Lina let herself relax back into the mattress and drift off to sleep for the night.

/\/\||/\/\-=End of Chapter 5=-/\/\||/\/\


	6. Chapter 6

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Chapter 6 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

.com

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

This is just one chapter of a multi-chapter fanfic, reading previous chapters is necessary to understand what is going on in the storyline (yes, despite the age restrictions there is a story line). Please visit the Slayers Hentai Fanfiction Archive (.com) to read previous and subsequent chapters.

*****************(Classic Snowflake Openings Rock!)*****************

**Chapter 6**

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

It only took a few moments for Amelia to realize where she was, after all it was Lina's turning in her sleep that had awoken her. The room, the window, it was all black. Still, tangled with the sorceress and covered in sheets, it was hard for her to force herself to wakefulness.

As she laid there though the slow realization of what had happened started to work her into a cold sweat. Thoughts of marriage, her prince on a white horse, Zelgadiss. She swallowed dryly her heart racing, she wanted to run. Everything had happened so fast, and felt so right, but now… She looked to the sorceress, wondering how she had ever thought this was the person she was destined to be with forever, feeling the familiar melancholy rise up inside herself for being a deluded child.

Despite any convincing she had given herself when she had given into Lina's advances, and when she had decided to try to make advances on Lina, her justifications felt weak and all too hollow after the fact. She couldn't deny what she had done. And it wasn't just a matter of her saving herself, she knew her physical purity was still intact. It was her whole self that had been betrayed.

Cautiously she started extracting herself from Lina's tangles. One leg woven between her own two legs which were pinned by Lina's other. Just to remove herself took several minutes. But then to remove herself from Lina's arms, especially without waking the sorceress, Amelia wasn't sure how much time had passed but it must have been considerable. By the time she was free of the sorceress' embrace, the dim light of the sun was beginning to spill through the window and across the foot of the bed.

Finally, untangled herself and managed to get to the foot of the bed. There was a fear that Lina could wake up any moment, and that caused Amelia to rush to the window to make her way back to her own room. In her haste she barely took the time to cover her naked body with a sheet before taking flight.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Awareness came slowly to Lina. That, in and of itself, was unusual. Life on the road and occasionally on the run had served to hone her instincts to the point where she woke quickly and with full comprehension of where she was and what she had been doing the night before. For awhile she just laid in bed, savoring the relaxing sensation as her brain slowly churned and hobbled through the facts at hand.

It took some time but the contentment that she had been feeling subsided and she managed to bribe her body to open an eyelid in exchange for a good breakfast. Soon the other followed. The absence of Amelia was duly noted. Still, it didn't seem anything ground shaking. She had always been one of the first to rise in the morning. One thing did worry her though as she sat up in the bed. The fact that most of Amelia's clothes were still scattered around her room. Which meant one of two things, either she had willingly left naked, or she had been kidnapped.

Lina gave herself a moment to think it over. Amelia leaving naked voluntarily didn't strike her as something the princess would ever do. Still, their group had not aroused the ire of any powerful enemies lately. At least anyone who had the skill to sneak off with Amelia in the dead of the night without causing a ruckus.

Honestly, both possibilities seemed far fetched so she laid back down and tried to think of a third scenario. Strange thoughts filtered into her head involving teleportation and magical circles. She began to realize that despite her motions of wakefulness she was only a hairs breath from being reclaimed by slumber. She let herself close her eyes, but just for a moment. If something had happened to Amelia she could have been wasting time.

The moment she had allotted herself continued to drag on, with Lina's mind trailing off to the night before. She'd never before felt something so visceral and completely encompassing. She rubbed her naked legs against each other and let out a light whimper as she remembered their embrace, with Amelia straddling her leg. To even touch her skin. There were so many areas she'd never touched before, and so much she suddenly wanted to do. The thought brought a playful smile to her face, she'd had enough lounging and forced herself out of bed.

Getting dressed was an interesting experience. It was a scavenger hunt of sorts with her clothing mixed with Amelia's. Some of it was bundled in with the blankets. Assorted pieces found their way beneath the bed, and a few pieces had been tossed to the far corners. Lina did manage to find all of her wardrobe. Though, since her own panties seemed ruined, she did submit to the temptation to wear Amelia's.

After taking a moment to make sure that her hair looked at least acceptable Lina headed out the door to try Amelia's room. Just as she expected, there was no answer so she went ahead downstairs for breakfast. As she descended the staircase Zelgadiss gave a slight wave in her direction to acknowledge her presence and Gourry gave a big smile. To Gourry's credit, his smile didn't waver in the face of the strange look Lina was giving him as she surveyed the table, "Have either of you two seen Amelia?" Lina asked looking around the small table as if the princess could be hiding in a corner somewhere.

"Haven't seen her all morning." Zelgadiss was quick to reply, adding an extra inflection to his voice to make it apparent that his day was all the better for it.

Lina resisted the urge to smack him on the back of the head as she took in Gourry's agreement with Zelgadiss' observation. Finally, Lina huffed and dropped her shoulders. The kidnapping theory was starting to gain some ground unfortunately. Without much to go on she turned back up the stairs, "I'll be back down in a minute. Order me some food, will ya Gourry?"

She ascended the stairs much faster than she had come down and rushed to Amelia's room. Again she knocked, this time more insistent. No answer. So she knocked again, faster this time, the door shaking on it's hinges from the quick damaging impacts. She waited, "Three!" she called out loud stomping her foot, "Two…" She seethed through clenched teeth, "One…"

The door swung wide open allowing Lina inside. "What were you doing Amelia, I was worried!" Lina chided her while pulling her into a hug and swinging her in a tight half-circle.

"Why were you worried?" Amelia asked, pushing Lina's arms off from around her shoulders.

"Because, it's not normal for you to be running around naked." Lina grinned as she pulled the front of her outfit away from her waist and used her other hand to pull up the edge of Amelia's panties, "I mean, these were just laying in them middle of my floor and I thought for sure the only way you'd leave without them is if you'd been kidnapped."

"Kidnapped?" Amelia wondered aloud, looking absently to the window. She interrupted her own apparent contemplation by a bout of giggles, "That seems a little far fetched."

"So, you just decided to sneak out of the room without so much as taking your clothes?" The question had a little bit of a dangerous edge to it, the initial relief that Lina had felt was waning and now she was more concerned with why exactly the Princess was acting so strange.

"I just thought it was time for me to get going." Amelia's response seemed a little too reflexive so Lina probed deeper.

"But after what happened last night…" Lina trailed off, unsure of how to phrase it or even if there was an accepted descriptive for what they had done together.

"Oh…" The smile that Amelia had been falsely wearing dropped momentarily from her face, "…well, I wasn't feeling-" Amelia stopped a moment before trying again, "I don't see how that really makes a difference."

Lina flushed visibly, "I know, I'm a little embarrassed too but…" She wanted to continue the train of thought that she had already laid out. She had planned on going over her embarrassment but try to keep Amelia viewing the act in a positive light by mentioning how good it made her feel. However the dead tone Amelia was using left Lina worrying. Sure, she had been afraid that perhaps Amelia would make a big deal about what they had done. Something about her innocence for sure, or even… marriage. That kind of stuff could complicate things, especially with something so new and fun to explore. But there was none of that, instead Amelia was avoiding the subject as much as possible.

Amelia noticed Lina's distraction, and took the opportunity to decisively wrap things up, "Anyway, the shops in town might have the rest of our supplies today so maybe we'll be able to get back out on the road. Just go along without me, okay?" She wrapped up quickly, her voice carrying a nervous pitch to it.

Lina sighed deeply, trying to see some hint of what she'd been seeing in Amelia over the last few days in her now cold eyes. "Okay. I guess. See ya later." Lina waved half-heartedly and turned out of the room, and out into the hallway.

She stood there a moment after the door closed. Her mind swirling over what had happened, and how that had caused such a change in her princess.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

"So, what's up with Amelia?" Gourry asked between bites of food. The question was a little uncharacteristic but was likely a result of Lina's earlier line of questioning.

"She's up in her room, worrying herself silly over something or other." Lina said bitterly. The more she thought about the situation the more it sat wrong in her stomach. She shoveled in some more food as if the reality of it might drive away the bad feelings.

Zelgadiss chuckled and despite Lina's irritation with the princess she still wanted to smack him in the head for it. Instead she managed a chuckle in response. "So, let's see…" Lina started out, trying to think of something else, "That lamp oil should be in today. And we should be finally getting some more of that pickled meat you like Gourry." He smiled in response before Lina continued, "After that, we might be able to head out tonight or at the latest tomorrow morning." Lina paused to take a drink from her stein, "And who knows, maybe within the week we'll have a new Zel to look at." Lina smiled, mock toasting the duo before sitting down.

She hadn't meant strictly to get his hopes up, but Zelgadiss looked a bit crushed, she guessed having so many cures fail could do that to a person though she had never known Zelgadiss to give up before. Besides, even he had said that he had a good feeling about this one. The Katart mountains were known for their magical energies and the ruins they were searching out, a second entrance to the Claire Bible, definitely held more than enough promise. Especially since the description of the place didn't explicitly state what the site promised, it was only gave a cryptic outline of what one explorer found inside, warped space. And that held promise enough in Lina's experience that the Clair Bible could be afoot.

Lina looked between Zelgadiss and Gourry. Even though they were putting on a front that they didn't care, without Amelia there it really was a different atmosphere than any of them were used to, even considering the way Lina and Amelia had been acting over the previous days. They ate in silence. One course was polished off, then another. "Gourry…" Lina finally started, breaking the stalemate, "Do you think you could come with me to pick up the lamp oil?"

Gourry gave a nod between bites of food, but didn't slow enough to afford a verbal response, actually parlaying the movement into a drink from his cup. Lina nodded back, "And Zel, you mind picking up the rest of the provisions from that place at the end of the street?" She hoped Zelgadiss knew where she was talking about because she couldn't for the life of her remember the name of the grocer located there.

Zelgadiss nodded as well, "Do you think we'll be heading out today? Or should we keep these rooms for another night?"

Lina pursed her lips, it probably would be for the best to ensure they had a place to stay, and push come to shove she knew she could get their money back if they felt like ditching town, "Good call, better make sure we go these rooms for at least another night while we are at it." Both Zelgadiss and Gourry nodded in agreement. A moment later Zelgadiss left the table and went off toward the front of the Inn. Lina looked at the bill in the middle of the table and left a few coins to cover it plus tip.

"Come on Gourry, time to go." She grabbed his hand and pulled him to his feet.

"What's the hurry?" He shouted, likely holding out for more food.

"The sooner we get our gear, the sooner we can leave this town behind us." She said with a wink to mask her irritation. They really had been in this town too long, and not by choice either. Lina was looking forward to leaving, plus there was always the hope that a change of scenery might turn Amelia's mood to something more manageable.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

"Sorry dear, but our supplies just haven't come in yet." In order to soften the blow, the older lady behind the counter wrung her hands out and continually gave slight bows.

If it wasn't for the age of the shop keep Lina would have socked her, "Haven't you ever heard of things like overhead? You know, keeping extra stock in case something like this happens." Lina growled out. "You didn't have anything yesterday, and you had time before that too, just to get supplies here. You're not that cut off from the rest of the world!" Lina sighed deeply, the oil would have to wait. Absently she wondered if they could get by without it but blanched at the idea, it proved to be pretty useful at times, especially for starting fires in the rain.

Lina tried again, "Did anything come in? Any new shipments to town?" She asked, wondering if Zelgadiss would have the same crummy luck as her and Gourry.

The lady put a finger to her chin, "Now that I think about it…. We did get some new fishing poles…they're eight gold apiece."

"Eight… a piece… they better be made of gold for that price!" Lina smacked a palm on the table, rattling a nearby display of porcelain figurines. Gourry knew that look, Lina was getting ready to haggle.

The old lady put a finger to her chin, slitting her eyes slightly, "I might be able to let one go to you for only six, seeing as how you've been put in this bind."

"How about you show me one of these poles and I tell you what it's worth…" Lina stated succinctly.

Reaching beneath the counter the lady removed a fishing rod of slightly longer than arm's length, Gourry took that as his que to leave, things could get messy. "Three silver." Gourry heard Lina offer as he was walking out the door, causing him to cringe, there was such a disparity between the stores price and what Lina offered he knew they might be in there for a while.

Outside the weather was beautiful. Another nice day, even with his armor it felt cool, like autumn. That was one good thing about heading into the mountains. And the snow, he wondered if Zelgadiss would help him build a snow man. He quirked a smile at the thought, despite how up tight he acted, Zelgadiss really did lend himself easily to having fun, once he started something that was. Slumping against the building Gourry could hear the two of them bickering back and fourth inside. As far as he knew they didn't need any fishing gear. Especially where they were in the mountains, the only thing the rivers carried was melt water. There weren't any fish here.

"Looks like we're stuck here." He muttered to himself, he was with Lina on that respect, he was sick of the town. He didn't like it one bit. Things had changed here. Sure, something had been in the works since just after they got out of the desert, but it was only after they made it to this town that the feeling had cemented itself. He looked through the window at Lina, frazzled, practically yelling at the shop keep. Somehow he'd lost her. He'd lacked the courage to act, just as he had with Sylphiel. He sighed, taking his gaze to the sky.

Was he just being selfish he wondered, or had Lina been the one to get the raw end of the deal due to his negligence. If it came down to it, all things equal, would she choose Amelia over him from the start? He shook the thought from his head. Letting the weight of his armor pull him down, Gourry slid with his back against the building to the ground. Something about this journey had felt different from the start. The way Lina and himself had joined back up with Zelgadiss, then with Amelia. The real promise of finally getting Zelgadiss a cure. It had just gone like clockwork. Almost too perfect. Sure, the road hadn't been free of obstacles, but for once it hadn't been the impossible they had been facing. It was just the normal, the routine. It made him wonder if their adventures together were really over. Their last hurrah. He looked down to his side, the Sword of Light was long gone. He remembered Lina after she'd cast her first Giga Slave, the white hair. So much had changed. The battle with Gaav, Zelgadiss laying broken and bleeding on the ground, they had all been through so much. Would it really be that much of a tragedy for it all to be over?

"Hey!" Gourry looked up, Lina had just walked out of the shop and was standing right over him holding out two fishing poles.

Her smile said enough but he had to ask, if only to feed her ego, "How much?" He said with a smile.

"Six silver… for both." Lina's face lit up even more and caused Gourry's smile to double in response.

"And what did we need those for again?" He asked a little chidingly.

She didn't dignify the question with a verbal response, just a raspberry.

Gourry figured as much, but it looked like Lina was feeling better. Whatever was going on between her and Amelia was bringing down his spirits, and Zelgadiss' as well as much as he could tell. She handed the fishing poles off to him.

"Well, let's go see how Zel's doing." She said smiling, putting her hands behind her head and starting to walk down the street.

Gourry nodded, "Yeah, maybe he's had some luck too."

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Zelgadiss cursed, if anything the supply situation seemed like it would stick the four of them in town another week at best. Maybe even longer. He was seriously considering just ignoring the supplies. He knew that he would be fine, he never had to eat much with his body the way it was. And they couldn't have had too much further to travel, maybe two or three days tops the way he figured it.

The only fly in the ointment was that once they reached this temple, if they wanted to stay there for any length of time they would need food. They would need water. They would need all of the provisions that they were waiting around for. He grumbled to himself as he walked away from the store. It sucked and he knew it but they had to at least have the essentials. Lamp oil be damned though, Lina could always resort to a lighting spell, or a fireball. He smirked at the thought.

Again he sighed. To have the possibly of a cure so close at hand… They could always hunt, but it was widely known that in the Katart mountains most animals were eerily missing, even settlements of people would randomly vanish. The old, unpredictable magics still roamed there, ancient spells that never expired still floated around cast during who knows which war between the gods and monsters. Suffice it to say, the chances of surviving off the land, save what roots they might be able to forage, looked like a dim possibility.

Absently he wondered if Lina was having any more success than him. He didn't believe so, but maybe the shop she went to had received some stock, and maybe they would have the provisions necessary for them to leave. He doubted it. A bit crestfallen he continued back to the inn. Out of the corner of his eye though he spotted a library. He'd been so concerned with making it to the next leg of his journey that this library had avoided his usual scrutiny. Still, now that he had the time. A smile tugged at the edges of his mouth, he wondered if he should go back to the inn and see if Amelia wanted to join him.

His face went sour. It seemed even less likely than the town suddenly getting a shipment of provisions. Still, he figured it was worth a shot. She'd been with him to enough libraries and had enough training to know exactly what was crap and what wasn't with respect to finding him a cure. Unlike Lina who managed to get distracted by every last little thing she found and Gourry who, despite his good intentions, brought Zelgadiss every scrap of paper with the word 'Chimera' on it. No, Amelia was a great help and he could really use her company, at least for now. And maybe he could find out a bit more about what had been going on with her lately while he was at it.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

As Lina and Gourry had made their way into the Inn, the Inn keeper flagged them down and passed along the message the both Zelgadiss and Amelia were at the library. Lina sighed, it was obvious if that was the case that his mission had failed. That meant they really were stuck for another night. Along with that she was staring to feel buyers remorse for the fishing poles she'd bought. She'd even been hard pressed to explain their utility to Gourry which really made her doubt herself.

The both of them found their way into the dining room. The lunch crowd had cleared out and they had it all to themselves. Almost absentmindedly Gourry reached into a pouch on his side and withdrew a whetstone. It was something he tended to do when he didn't have any immediate plans for battle.

*Schinnnnkkkk*

He drew the stone down the sword in one fluid motion. The sound cut through the silence as well as any metaphor could describe and he continued sharpening the blade. Lina looked around apprehensively, wondering if the Inn keeper or kitchen staff would take offense to the noise, but seeing that they ignored it she unclasped her own dagger, "Could you get mine too while you're at it?" She handed it to him with a smile and he accepted it, giving her a nod in return.

Again she watched Gourry draw the stone down the blade. It wasn't hurried like when she did it. Each movement was just as controlled, just as concise as the previous. She wondered if he just thought about the sword, or if his mind was wandering. She wondered what he was thinking about right now.

Gourry hadn't changed. Well, not his core. Gourry was still Gourry. He'd just gotten faster, stronger, and after he lost the Sword of Light, even a bit smarter to compensate. But he was always the same. She'd wondered for years now when he would make his move for her heart. It had been within reach more times than she cared to count, but he never reached out to take it. She gave a sad smile, wondering if there was something she was not seeing. She'd wanted him so badly to make that move before, but now… the distance between them was growing.

Lina put her head in her hands and continued to watch Gourry. He never looked up, he was too focused. Did he have the same feelings? Why didn't he just come out with them and say something. Back when it meant something, she admitted to herself. That nagging feeling was back again. And she wasn't sure if it was her joke with Amelia that had caused the rift, or if it was just Amelia herself. She wanted to do _it_ again. She felt the heat come to her cheeks at the thought. But was that all she wanted. Gourry drew the stone down the blade one more time before lifting it to eye level and looking down the blade. Was what she was feeling for Amelia, the same as…

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Zelgadiss and Amelia barely made it back before the end of dinner. "Where were you two?" Lina asked as they hurriedly put themselves down at the table.

"Oh, you know, the usual, spending hour after hour looking through stacks of worthless books." Amelia muttered uncharacteristically cynical, earning her strange looks from both Lina and Zelgadiss, he'd honestly thought she had been enjoying herself.

Zelgadiss cleared his throat, "Sorry, I guess I lost track of time. Apparently they don't have any windows in the library because the action of the sun on the books causes them to fade. I'd noticed it before but never made the connection. Torchlight doesn't seem to have the same effect so neither of us had much to go on until the librarian shooed us out."

"Hummm…" Lina processed the bit of new information.

Amelia looked around a moment, "I'm not hungry." She said unexpectedly and rose from her seat and ascended the stairs.

Gourry was the first to speak, just as Amelia was out of sight, "Amelia is sure acting strange today." Both Zelgadiss and Lina looked at him. It was true but neither wanted to say it.

"Yeah," Zelgadiss started out, "did anything happen between the two of you?" He finished.

Lina nearly spit out her wine but instead it just went down the wrong pipe. "What would make you think that?" She croaked, coughing a bit.

Zelgadiss sighed, "You know we won't be able to keep dancing around the issue forever."

Lina gave a false smile in return, "I don't know what you're talking about."

Zelgadiss returned with a serious look. "Don't act like we're not on to you two. Just talk it over with her and get it out of your systems."

Lina looked down into her glass of wine, it was hard keeping up her act when Zelgadiss was so determined to force a heaping of reality on her. She looked to Gourry, did he know as much as Zelgadiss? She doubted it but he had shown himself to be pretty insightful before. "You know, I'm not hungry any more either…" And with that she walked away up to her room for the night, leaving Zelgadiss and Gourry watching after her.

/\/\||/\/\-=End of Chapter 6=-/\/\||/\/\


	7. Chapter 7

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Chapter 7 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

.com

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

This is just one chapter of a multi-chapter fanfic, reading previous chapters is necessary to understand what is going on in the storyline (yes, despite the age restrictions there is a story line). Please visit the Slayers Hentai Fanfiction Archive (.com) to read previous and subsequent chapters.

*****************(Classic Snowflake Openings Rock!)*****************

**Prologue**

**- Sairaag-**

**7 Years Previous**

"Hummm…" Gourry stared down at the note in his hands, wondering to himself just how someone had tracked him down or even how someone knew he had come to be the bearer of the Sword of Light. Briefly he glanced to his side at the hanging weapon, feeling a little bitter at the upheaval that it managed to cause in his family over the generations.

But the fact remained that someone did manage to get his letter to him. He decided that no time was like the present and expertly popped the wax seal with one handed, flipping the envelope open and pulling out the contents, unfolding it. It took his brain a moment to adjust to the fancy script of the letter and for a fleeting second he wondered if he should have devoted as much time to bookwork and reading as his teachers had suggested. Looking down at the letter he took a few steps to the side and out of the pedestrian traffic, hugging up against one of the buildings in the square.

_Gourry Gabriev, _

_Hopefully this letter finds you well. I am a priest in the city of Sairaag and I am writing on behalf of everyone in the city to ask of your assistance. Your forefathers once defeated the great evil Zanaffar in our city, but it is our worry that a great evil may once again be awakening! You are the only person in this world that has the power to help us Mr. Gabriev. If you could make it to our city as quickly as possible we would be forever in your debt. Please, from the bottom of our hearts we are begging for your help in this matter and are praying for your arrival as soon as possible._

_Eruk Lahda_

"Sairaag…" Gourry thought aloud, scratching his head, "I think I remember something about that…." He shook his head to clear his thoughts, "I wonder where it is?" He glanced around to see if the Paige that had given him the letter was still afoot but apparently he had long since disappeared into the swelling afternoon crowds. "I guess I'll have to get a map." He conceded after a moments thought. Although the letter was pulling him away from his new freedom on the road, it still served to increase his happiness level. Suddenly he had purpose, his first real goal and he wasn't about to let himself or his family down.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

In all, the trip wasn't really eventful at all. He reflected as the city started to come into view. There had been a few bandits, but not a single one had decided to take it upon themselves to make it their bad day. Likely not from any skill they feared he possessed, but he looked the part of the mercenary, and mercenaries are not notorious for overflowing coin purses. What captivated him most as he neared the city was the overwhelming feeling he got starring at the large tree growing in the center of the city. The holy tree of Flagoon. He'd heard about it as soon as he mentioned the city of Sairaag when he had been searching for a map, and since then it had been mentioned synonymously with the city itself on nearly every occasion.

The tree proved to be so distracting that he hardly noticed the wall several meters high looming in front of him. That is until the top of the wall began to cut into this skyward field of vision. By then he was just to the edge of it's shadow, the sun projecting from behind it. He took a moment to look over the gate in his path. It was slightly ajar and a trickle of traffic was making its way through either side. Around the gate a few guards were positioned, questioning the entries into the city, likely on what their business was there. In response Gourry fished around in one of his pockets, eventually retrieving the envelope from the priest. Effectively he considered it his permission to enter.

Strolling up to the gates he got in the meager line with just two people ahead of him. Standing there he noticed that the traffic exiting the city was substantially more than those entering… and they were considerably better packed than someone expecting to be gone for just a day or two. It looked like they were expecting to be gone for a very long time, if not forever. The contents of the message started to come back to him, "Maybe this is serious…" He mussed to himself aloud as he glanced back to the envelope, his gaze drifting to his sword a moment before his head snapped up upon realizing he was next up.

"Papers?" At the prompting of the voice Gourry thrust out his hand holding the letter. The guard, obviously the overworked and underpaid type, looked questioningly at the offering. Being that they were not quite the regulation papers he was asking for he prodded, "I don't care about any letters, you need to show me your license to barter in Sairaag, proof of citizenship from your state, or proof of family to enter the city." The guard droned on, a speech he had said more times in his life then he had cared to count.

"But…" Gourry started, for a moment he was worried that he might not be able to get in so he pushed on, "That guy," Gourry cursed himself for not being able to remember his name, "Sent me a letter asking me to come here, you can look at it…"

Trailing off, Gourry hoped for the best. The guard gave an exasperated sigh and opened the letter up. He paused for a moment looking at the crest of the seal and his eyes widened slightly. Upon reading through the letter his eyes continued to show his complete surprise, "Yor- you're the Swordsman of Light." He muttered out disbelieving.

"Yeah." Gourry got out nodding, happy to be recognized and his hope growing that he might actually get within the city walls.

"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry about all of this, this way please." The guard extended his hand and gestured Gourry through the gates. The letter was this time moved toward Gourry prompting him to take it.

A thought crossed his mind though, "Where do I go…?" He managed out, trying no to sound entirely clueless.

Nodding profusely the guard pointed down the main street directly ahead, "Just follow Flagoon street and at the end of it you'll come to the temple. It's so big you can't miss it." Gourry nodded and turned toward the main street as the guard called out behind him, "Good luck!" And after that last bit of encouragement Gourry committed himself once again to the task, taking great strides down the street.

Through his elated mood, Gourry started to feel something amiss as he continued to walk. Right on the edge of his senses there was this darkness, hard to discern from… Gourry turned sharply, his gaze drawn to the far away sight of the forest just beyond the wall of the city- something there. He tried to concentrate for a minute, as if his will might bring any threat lying there into a better focus but forced himself to turn away. There was definitely an odd feeling there.

He reminded himself that he was the Swordsman of Light. Pushing away the foreboding feeling he turned his attention back to the structure in the distance. The temple. In the shade of the Holy Tree the temple emitted just the opposite feeling that the forest had. Serenity, confidence, strength. The crowd swum turbidly at the edges of the moving mass of people, Gourry almost had to pause to gather himself again, his height was giving him an edge but he wasn't quite used to a city as bustling as Sairaag.

Giving a sigh of relief, Gourry finally made his way out of the crowd, ascending the staircase to the main temple. People were still moving up and down the grandiose granite steps, but considerably fewer residents were visiting the temple than were in the main crowd. He stopped himself for a moment just to the side of the main entrance way. He took a moment to adjust his sword and tighten his chest plate. Futilely he tried to force down his mussed hair as he imagined the state of it after several days of travel. His hands came back dusty and oily and convinced him of the pointlessness of the effort which caused him to crack a bit of a grin before he convinced himself that he had at least made an effort.

Grudgingly he admitted to himself that he was stalling. Despite the bravado of heading to Sairaag without delay now he was anxious about actually talking with Eruk. He forced out a deep breath, pushing himself to stand all the taller and straighter before turning abruptly with new purpose and nearly barreling into an elderly woman making her way out of the temple. Thankfully he stopped himself short, she didn't even realize that she had almost been toppled by the armor clad swordsman.

Inside he was nervous but he hid it well. It was becoming easier to project that cool calm exterior he had always associated with his father when he was carrying the Sword of Light. Inside the massive stained oak double doors of the temple was a huge dome. It was ornate with golden accents and had a perfectly spherical hole at its apex which flooded the center of the room with an almost unearthly glow. The statue there glowed from the light despite it only being made of marble or some other even less brilliant stone. After his eyes acclimated to the juxtaposition of light and dark across the circular room he spotted the tell-tale robes of a priest. Finally, he headed across the room on a collision course with the religious figure.

"Hello!" Gourry called out as he closed the distance between himself and the robbed person. They stopped at the greeting.

"May I help you with something young man?" His tone was formal but there was the slightest edge there, like Gourry had disturbed him during the middle of some important errand.

"Yeah, you see I got this letter-" Gourry paused as he reached into his pocket to retrieve it and hold it out. The priest didn't seem inclined to take it from him so Gourry continued, "So, I need to find Eruk if you could help me?"

The man looked side to side, obviously trying to find someone else to pass the task onto, "And what do you need with Eruk if I may be so bold to ask?"

Gourry scrunched up his forehead, "I don't know, the letter didn't say."

Finally the man let out a great huff, "And who are you?"

"I'm Gourry." He stated standing more upright, then after seeing the look of unresponsiveness on the Priest's features he added a little awkwardly, "The bearer of the Sword of Light."

"Oh, I'll go get him immediately, just wait right here." And with that the man rushed away, heading off into one of the corridors that honeycombed the outer peripherals of the dome.

"Humm?" Gourry followed the man with his eyes wondering why he had gotten so helpful at the end. Could the Sword of Light have been really that important outside of Elmekia? Sure, he'd heard the stories growing up though he had never really paid attention to them. It was true that his father had been somewhat of a celebrity around town, but Gourry had always put that off as something that stemmed from his unmatchable swordsmanship. Not from… Gourry directed his gaze downward to the sword on his hip, it was so much trouble, had he made the right choice?

With time to kill he continued his inspection of the dome, there were some murals along the upper edges of the walls but they were difficult to discern from a distance. So instead he eyed the statue in the center of the room. It was a soldier, a young one, maybe just a little younger than Gourry. He looked it over, head to heel until his eyes locked on the sword the figure was carrying, the Sword of Light. His eyes widened slightly.

"I see you recognize your ancestor Mr. Gabriev."

Gourry spun around to the voice, he didn't recognize the bearded priest, however from his tone it sounded like he expected Gourry so he hazarded a guess, "Eruk?"

"Yes Mr. Gabriev, and I appreciate you traveling so far on such short notice." The priest bowed deeply and Gourry bowed slightly in return because he wasn't really sure how to respond.

"So, Eruk…" Gourry paused trying his best to play the part of the wielder of the Sword of Light. "What is it you need my help with?"

Eruk's face tightened, "First, there's someone I would like you to meet Mr. Gabriev, if you would just come with me."

"Oh, who are we going to meet?" He asked curious.

"My daughter, now please, come along." And with that the two of them headed out of the dome, leaving a sinking feeling in Gourry's stomach.

**Chapter 7**

It was bright and early when Lina had decided it was time to round up the troops. Reluctant to go straight to Amelia's door, she tried Gourry and Zelgadiss' first. She knocked with a restraint befitting the time of day and quickly enough Gourry was opening the door. A bit bleary eyed but apparently awake.

"Morning already?" He asked with a bit of sleep in his eye.

"Yup, time to get ready, all of our supplies are in." Lina said with a grin.

"How do you know that?" Gourry asked curious, surely Lina hadn't got that much of a jump on anyone, the sun hadn't even fully risen.

"A whole caravan of supply wagons came right past here this morning." Then seeing Gourry's questioning look she added, "A merchant's daughter knows these things."

Gourry nodded, leaving it at that, "Okay, see ya in a little bit, I'm going to try and get in a bath before we head out." Lina smiled back in return as he closed the door.

Right after she left he scrambled to grab a towel and get down to the baths to catch up with Zelgadiss. He'd woken up a short time previous and headed down already. Gourry entered the changing room and stripped down, wrapping a towel around his waist before entering the bathing area. "Hey Zel!" He called out to announce his arrival. Zelgadiss gave a wave but otherwise went back to soaking against a nearby rock.

Dropping his towel Gourry carefully put one foot into the water, wary not to step on any kind of slippery scale that had a tendency to develop along the inside of these types of in-ground baths before making his way over near Zelgadiss, lowering himself into the chilly water and sitting back against the rocks himself.

"I've got to know what to do." Gourry fussed, moving his hands beneath the water and creating eddies and small splashes.

Zelgadiss looked up from the water, "Have you thought about just talking to her?"

Gourry flushed a little, "But-- Well, what can I say?"

Zelgadiss graciously offered a small show to give Gourry a demonstration of how things should go down. He took his hands above the water and lifted them up. With his right and left hands separated by some distance he lifted them so that the index and middle finger were dangling and made them 'walk' through the air to confront each other. With his hands in front of his face, meeting just like they were people Zelgadiss tried his best Gourry voice, "Hey Lina!" Gourry for his part was still, wondering where Zelgadiss was going with this. Meanwhile Zelgadiss' other hand took on Lina's voice, well, what was likely an impression of Lina's voice, "Hey Gourry!" Zelgadiss shook his 'Gourry' hand up and down to indicate that its turn to speak had arrived, "You know, I couldn't help but notice that you and Amelia have been acting really close lately." The Lina hand bobbed up and down a moment before Zelgadiss responded in her voice, "Yup!" Zelgadiss took the two 'walking' fingers of his Gourry hand and rubbed them together, like a child would kick their toes while telling someone something embarrassing, "Well…" Zelgadiss started in Gourry's voice, "I just wanted to tell you that I love you too!"

"No I don't!" Gourry lifted out of the water, splashing Zelgadiss heavily in the process.

Zelgadiss was unfazed and responded in mock surprise, "Oh, you don't? So you're just upset she might end up with Amelia on some kind of ethical grounds?"

The play was over and Zelgadiss had decided to be tough on Gourry for a moment, "I-- well, I don't know!" Gourry waved his hand out before him, like he was defending himself from unseen attackers. "It's just--"

Zelgadiss broke in, "Just what Gourry! You've been obsessing about this for over a week, just get it over with or you know you'll regret it!" Gourry snorted, then let out a deep breath, letting his hands fall to his sides, "Just talk to Lina, you've been with her longer than any of us Gourry, if you just talk to her, I'm sure she'll be honest with you."

Nodding wordlessly Gourry turned away before raising his voice, "And where do you stand in all of this Zel?"

Pausing for a second Zelgadiss looked down into the water, its surface settling and his image starting to rise up from the depths of its occluded surface aided by the morning sun. "I don't have time for love…" His usual mask was there, but Gourry could sense the emotions were barely contained. Still, it was a rare frankness that Gourry felt the need to take advantage of,

"So, did Amelia have a chance with you?"

Again, a pause, "Yeah… she did. But, I knew it would have been too hard on the both of us." Gourry nodded and started walking away before Zelgadiss stopped him.

"Honestly though, Lina had a much better chance…" Gourry turned barely, just catching Zelgadiss with the slightest of smiles.

"Oh, are you saying that even if Amelia isn't in this, then I still have a bit of competition?" Gourry chided.

In response, Zelgadiss raised his eyebrow ever so slightly, "At least you've got Sylphiel to fall back on." The seriousness of the statement took Gourry aback for a moment before Zelgadiss' smile again came through, causing the two of them to share a bout of laugher.

"You know, for a second there I thought you were serious."

Zelgadiss' mirthful smile showed the playfulness, "Why, is there something wrong with Sylphiel?" But his follow-up question further fed Gourry's doubts. He sat back down in the water though, on the far side of the pool.

"You know Lina's waiting for us to get out there and eat some breakfast…." Zelgadiss made an affirmative sound, "… But I think I still need some time to think…"

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

The sun made it hard to focus on the road. Lina squinted, it would figure that they were heading toward the rising sun again. It was always such a pain in the butt. Her grievances with the morning continued with the temperature. Somewhere during their ascent into higher altitudes they had lost all sense of heat. Until recently she could see her breath and her footsteps were greeted with the gentle crunch of ice as she walked through the heavily frosted grass.

She had no doubt that the weather would warm to tolerable levels as the day progressed but for the moment she held her arms tightly against her chest and folded her cape protectively around herself. Lina looked over her shoulder to the group behind her. Even in short sleeves Gourry looked comfortable, and Zelgadiss looked equally at ease, though Lina would have personally enjoyed his heavy woolen outfit and cowl. If there was anyone in her group that sympathized with her plight it had to have been Amelia.

The princess looked even more miserable, alternating between shivering and rubbing her hands together. At some point during the start of their journey she had even pulled a blanket out of her backpack. Though the end of it was still inside the backpack, it flowed down over her shoulder and covered her arms. A bit unorthodox, but something Lina herself would have enjoyed were her own blanket not buried completely at the bottom of her own pack.

As the road took a steeper pitch she grumbled to herself. She'd been the one getting everyone moving so early in the morning. Even Zelgadiss had seemed content to wait a little longer before leaving. But she had pressed it and got everyone on the road with hardly a bite to eat. She wondered if that was something contributing to the silence. Amelia, Gourry, Zelgadiss, they'd hardly said anything at all amongst themselves.

Lina looked back to Amelia uncomfortably, eyeing her blanket but remembering what had happened that morning. They had both been waiting downstairs for Gourry and Zelgadiss when Lina had felt Amelia take her hand. She'd felt her breath catch in her throat as Amelia gently squeezed her fingers. Lina had turned enough to catch Amelia's expression before the princess pulled away like she had touched debris from a fireball blast.

It had been unsettling to say the least. Any game that they had been playing with Gourry and Zelgadiss was over. Lina didn't know what to say to the princess that she already hadn't. Things were getting…difficult. Lina hated the tension, something would eventually have to give there. She wasn't going to be able to deal with it forever.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

They'd continued on a steep ascent most of the day. The air continued getting thinner and colder by the step. It was arduous work, and Lina was definitely starting to feel winded for it. Sometimes the trail lead around the mountain and other times it lead straight up the mountain. Next time she swore she was just going to use a dragon slave and go through the mountain. The thought made her smile. That and the fact they were nearly there, another day at the most before the four of them finally made it to their destination.

She turned slightly to her right and back, keeping an eye on the swordsman and the chimera. The Kakarat mountains were dangerous and by keeping an eye on the two of them and their stress levels she got a feel for the situation and any danger they might have been in. Despite the danger, and the sometimes biting wind, her mind continued to find its way back to the princess traveling behind her. They'd hardly said five words to each other since they'd left the last town and Lina wasn't sure if things were ever going to look up from there. She thought for sure that Amelia was plotting to leave the group sometime soon, and maybe with no warning. She hadn't even been talking to Zel.

Wanting to get a reaction, anything out of Amelia, Lina purposefully slowed her pace. Gradually Amelia caught up with her and eventually, with careful movements was traveling along side her. Timidly Lina reached out with her hand and took one of Amelia's in her own. The reaction was instantaneous thought not what Lina was hoping for. Amelia quickly pulled away from the contact, nearly loosing her footing in the process.

"Hey!" Amelia called out glaring at Lina before regaining her balance.

"What?" Lina answered back cockily, it was easier to feel the anger. That Amelia's reaction had been uncalled for.

In response she was snubbed, Amelia wasn't even looking her way again. Lina looked to Gourry and Zelgadiss for their take on things but neither one wanted to meet her eyes. She wasn't sure what they thought. She was pretty sure they were convinced that herself and Amelia were in fact a couple. They probably just thought it was some kind of quarrel that would work itself out. Something that a strong relationship would work through.

She tired to think of something other than Amelia as she walked faster to catch up with Gourry and Zelgadiss. Eventually she found herself walking between the two of them, matching them stride for stride. She wished that her relationship with Gourry and Amelia was as honest as hers was with Zelgadiss. At least she knew his stake thing things. Sure, he was selfish and seemingly just in it for the cure. But she knew he also cared deeply for his friends. She knew that when it came down to it, he would choose them over a cure. Though she didn't delude herself to believe that he even realized that tidbit.

That was it though, he was a good friend. The loyalty may have been lacking at times, but he would always come through in a pinch. It was Gourry who was more difficult to decipher.

Even when she came right out and asked him he could never give her a straight answer about their relationship besides the usual cryptic 'guardian' routine. She wasn't even sure he knew what it was. Whether he was just her protector, or something more. She wondered if their relationship only seemed to become more romantically inclined simply because they both expected it to end up that way. The more she became entangled in it though the more it seemed like something there was being forced. They'd been traveling together almost her whole adult life, she'd only really become a woman a few months before she started traveling with the blonde swordsman.

Did she honestly expect to end up with the first person she ran across for life? Her stomach growled and she tried to ignore it. Her thinking would be more productive on a full stomach but they had forgone the most important meal of the day in order to make haste over the mountain before less favorable weather came in. Reluctantly her thoughts came back to Gourry. They'd been traveling so long and still she didn't know much about him either. Whenever she asked about his home he dodged the issue as eloquently as she could. He was so much older than her, and had been a soldier for hire to boot. For all she knew he could have bastard children running all over Elmekia.

She doubted it though, it wasn't in his nature and his nature was one thing he couldn't hide. Maybe if she knew more the situation would be more easy to think about though. A torrid wind blew down the mountain causing Lina to pull her cloak more tightly around her body, partially covering her face. After a month of traveling though, to have the goal so close at hand. Lina tried to think of that instead of more uncomfortable issues. There would be time enough to dwell on those things later. That is, unless her princess decided to take flight.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Their ascent into the mountains eventually turned into a decent. Then they were again climbing to mountain peaks. Up and down until Lina's ears ached from the pressure changes and her feet throbbed and burned in her tight leather boots. The others were not faring much better. Hours had passed since they left but the sun didn't look like it was moving much at all. The temperature had risen but instead of a bearable heat it was more humidity, more arduous climbing.

"Gahhhh…." Lina groaned, her hands were sticky from the humidity but at the same time she was cold from the occasional breezes the blew all about them. Somehow it was simultaneously the worst that both hot and cold weather could offer. Lina hated it. They continued the journey, mountains covered in roots and brambles, stones and dirt. Occasionally Zelgadiss and Lina would take Gourry by the hand and travel by levitation between adjacent mountains to save time. But they were partially conserving their strength for anything that might lie ahead. What little they did though helped to keep up good time.

Finally, the day wore near to the end. The sun was still up. There was still some time left, but they had found a good place to camp in one of the rare patches of forest that dotted the mountain sides. It wasn't much, but the meager cover it offered for them outweighed the potential danger of someone sneaking into their campsite. Still, they setup their tents in a tight circle to keep things centralized around the fire. The trees were huge, larger around than any of their arms could encircle by far, and densely packed in areas too. Thankfully they seemed to shed a lot of limbs and there was plenty of firewood to collect for the night.

If there was one good thing about traveling with a decent sized group of people, it was that night watch was much easier. When someone didn't have to spend half of their night starring off into the woods, it not only made it more effective, but gave everyone a heck of a better night sleep too. Lina set Zelgadiss up with the first shift, Gourry with the second, and decided to take the third for herself. She didn't offer up Amelia's services on her own and Amelia didn't offer them either. It wasn't a problem, just another oddity in a list of oddities for the day.

The four of them sat around the fire for some time, until one by one they dozed off. Amelia was first, then Gourry, and finally Lina. "Good night Zel." She waved as she made her way to her new tent. He gave a nod in her direction. And then, it was time to sleep.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Amelia laid there for some time listening to the sounds of Lina laughing just outside her tent. Giving a huff she grabbed the pillow from beneath her head and put it over her ears. It didn't help. Eventually she shifted again, putting it back behind her head but rolling onto her side and twisting the pillow around the back of her head and pinning it against her ear.

"Lina…" She mumbled to herself. Amelia marveled how in the course of just two days things had gone form planned to indescribably complicated. "What am I going to do?" She asked herself, again rolling onto her back. The tent blocked out the sharpness of the light but still on the front of the tent she could make out the distinctness of Lina's shadow. Amelia set her face into a grimace, but felt like she wanted to cry.

She had been saving herself. And no matter the excuse she made for herself, she couldn't forgive what she had done. Lina wasn't the one. Them more she thought about it the more she realized she wasn't her love. She was just… just… she couldn't even bring herself to think in such vulgar terms, but she was just something to sate her lust. She tried not to think of the other feelings that she had during the deed. They only complicated things. She just needed to make it through the next couple days, get Zelgadiss his cure, and then everything would be right back on track.

Then maybe, just maybe, she might be able to look back on everything that had happened and laugh.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

"Lina… Lina… time to get up." Lina lifted her head. It was still dark in the tent and the fire had burned much lower than it had been when she had initially fallen asleep.

"Gourry?" She asked, seeing an outline against the outside of her tent. "Is it time for my watch already?"

"Yeah, but I can take over if you want." He responded back, trying to keep his voice down so as not to wake the others.

"No, no, I'll be out in a minute." Lina forced herself upright, not wanting to take advantage of Gourry's generosity for once. She'd fallen asleep almost fully dressed as she usually did in dangerous places so all that was left to do was don her boots and cape before she exited the tent.

"See anything strange?" She asked, sitting down quietly next to Gourry.

"Nope, I heard some weird noises, but I think they were pretty far away." He added the last bit skeptically. Leaving Lina wondering if he was just trying to alleviate any stress she might be feeling.

"Okay, thanks, now you get some sleep."

"Lina…?"

"Yeah?"

"….. nothing…."

Lina watched wordlessly as he entered his tent for the night. Carefully he buttoned up all of the buttons on his tent flap then Lina listened to his boots drop off, one at a time to the floor. And finally she heard him settle in. Her eyes had meanwhile locked on Amelia's tent. It was time to settle things. Patiently she let the fire burn on just a little bit longer, "_Sleeping_…" She intoned, directing the energy to the other two tents.

"Amelia…" She called out, tapping her finger against the canvas wall, the tightness of it causing it to ring out hollow.

"Amelia, wake up."

"What is it?" Called back a tired Amelia.

"Could you come out here, I've got to talk to you."

Silence… then, "About what?"

"Just get out here!" Lina growled while still trying to keep her voice down.

"Okay," Amelia started climbing out of her tent, "What do you want?"

"Come on." Lina grabbed her by the hand, immediately Amelia pulled back to get away but Lina just tightened her grip, dragging Amelia along and into the woods.

The woods were dense enough to where they didn't have to travel far. Only a short distance away the sounds and light of the fire were absent. Thankfully, despite the height and width of the trees, they lacked sufficient foliage at the top to blot out the light. And tonight being a full moon there was plenty of it.

"Can you tell me what this is all about now?" Amelia asked frazzled.

Lina moved in faster than she expected, planting a kiss firmly on her lips. Amelia responded almost as quickly, planting her hands against Lina's chest and shoving her back into a tree, "What do you think you're doing!" Amelia shouted at the intrusion.

Lina shook her head, regaining her bearings, she figured she probably deserved it, "I'm not sure." Lina decided to try and tell her exactly what she had planned on telling her before. It was the only thing she could think of, a basic kind of generalization of what she had been feeling herself, "It's just, I know you're embarrassed. I mean, your first time was with me and all. But look at the bright side, you're still a virgin, technically at least. We were just... Trying something new, right?"

"I know Lina. _Technically_ I am still a virgin. but that doesn't matter to me as much as the fact that I was saving myself for the one I love!"

"Zel?" Lina questioned oblivious.

"I don't know!" Amelia shouted, "I just--" She buried her face in her hands and leaned up against the tree behind her. The silence of the forest rapidly settling in.

"I'm sorry..." Lina didn't really know how to put it in words, to make Amelia feel better, but she hoped it was a start. "I didn't mean to- I mean... you came on to me if you remember." She stopped herself short, not wanting to make the princess feel worse. "It's just, it didn't feel wrong to me when we were doing it."

Lina heard a sniffle before Amelia responded, "I know, it's not your fault, it's mine. I was weak. My etiquette instructor always warned me that it could happen, but she always told me to watch out for the men that would seduce me. I guess she just never met a woman quite like you." Amelia finished with a sad giggle, sounding at least marginally like her old self.

Again, silence. Lina wanted to say something to fill in the dead air, but Amelia was first to act, "You know the worst thing about it?" Amelia laughed out, a slight bitterness to her tone.

What?" Lina asked after a moment's pause when she was sure Amelia wasn't just acting rhetorically.

"Now that I know what I'm missing, I want it even more now." Amelia sighed. And it was the truth, earlier in the tent when she had been trying to fall asleep, with Lina, Gourry, even Zelgadiss outside she had cupped her womanhood, even slid in a few fingers, and brought herself off with the shadows of her friends playing across the wall in front of her. It was that action that had later caused her own bitter thoughts about herself and Lina.

"Yeah," Lina muttered dryly, "I know exactly how you feel." She watched her in the moonlight. Her eyes downcast, embarrassed. Gingerly Lina reached out and put her hand to Amelia's shoulder. And seeing no negative reaction, allowed her hand to trail up along the smaller girls neck and to her cheek, cupping her face. Amelia shivered slightly at the feeling but otherwise gave no objection.

"I haven't been able to stop thinking about it either." Lina started, rubbing one of her fingers along Amelia's cheek, "I just never… I always thought sex would be more of a chore, at least for a woman." She let out a sigh thinking of all the times she'd been fooled into that way of thinking growing up. "But with you- When you were calling out my name." Lina gave a little shiver, "It had to have been one of the most thrilling things in my life."

Amelia felt her breath coming faster, "When I called out your name?" Amelia responded, earnestly in wonder.

"Yeah, you had your legs wrapped around mine, and were grinding yourself against me. You called out for me." Lina turned away, despite the darkness she still worried that Amelia might be able to pick up on her blush.

"Oh," Amelia hadn't remembered anything of the sort, it was kind of a surprise, "You know, you called out for L-sama…"

"Really?" Lina looked to the stars, "That's weird."

Over time Lina had continued stroking the side of Amelia's face and her fingers had trailed over her entire cheek. One of Amelia's hands went up to join Lina's covering Lina's own hand. "Have you ever heard anything about something like this?" Amelia asked off handedly.

"You mean," Lina gulped, she knew exactly what Amelia was asking, "between two girls?"

"Yeah." Amelia answered back feeling breathless.

"No, at least nothing public. I've heard rumors, but those were mostly from horny guys." Amelia had taken a step forward, she was violating Lina's personal space, but it wasn't anything negative she felt.

"I'm worried." Amelia said, rubbing her face against Lina's hand. "I don't know what about yet, but I can feel it in the pit of my stomach." Fluidly Amelia took Lina's index finger in her mouth, sucking it in to the second knuckle and pulling it back out again causing Lina's eyes to widen before continuing. "It's all so complicated now, with Gourry, with Zelgadiss…"

"Something about being this close to you…" Lina tried to reason as Amelia moved in, nipping her lip then taking it into her mouth. Lina slowly leaned into the kiss, taking her hand from the side of Amelia's face and putting it behind her back, pulling herself into the princess.

"Hey--" Lina tried to ask something, pulling away, but Amelia drowned it out with another kiss. She didn't want to ask any questions. She didn't want to have to explain anything. It was just something she needed and she knew Lina wanted. And she really saw no reason to fight the feeling any longer.

Lina felt herself being pulled forward, she gave into the movement and allowed Amelia to pull her against her. This is what she had wanted from the start. To just feel her lips against Amelia's again. To just give into those impulses. To make her moan and squirm and have her do the same in return. Feeling the princess start running her hands over Lina's back, Lina did likewise but settled her hands on Amelia's butt, giving it a tight squeeze, causing the princess to deepen the kiss.

"Please Lina, make me feel like you did the other day!" Amelia moaned into the kiss, not leaving Lina's reaction to chance she pulled away enough to lift her shirt up and over her head, tossing it to the mossy ground. Lina took the command in stride and pushed Amelia's bra up over her breasts and started fondling them just as she had before, still amazed at their size and firmness.

"Only if you'll do the same for me." Lina gasped out as a delayed response. In return Amelia moved one of her hands to the back of Lina's head and pulled her roughly forward and into another deep kiss, their tongues meeting for the first time that night. Not at all timid as it had been before, both of them having looked forward to this most every waking moment for the last two days.

Lina felt Amelia sliding down the tree behind her, and dropped down with her. Finally with her knees fully bent, Amelia dropped to her side and landed on the ground on her back. The forest floor was covered in moss. Thankfully it was of the dry variety, but over the millennia it had built up a soft coating over most everything. Against Amelia's naked back it felt great. She released her hands from behind Lina's back, letting Lina pull up slightly.

Sitting upright, Lina grasped the bottom edge of her shirt just under her belt and pulled it up and over her head. Struggling a bit at the unforgiving fabric. She tossed it to the ground, thankful for the darkness. Even if Amelia had already seen her chest, it was something she still felt a bit of trepidation with regards to.

Apparently though Lina's chest was only causing Lina indecision on her part. Amelia knew exactly what to do with it. Reaching out she took a breast in each hand and pulled herself up and Lina down to meet her. Catching her with a kiss in the middle. It was different now Lina realized. Already the feelings that she had before, the exploratory nature was gone. But the feelings in her head, the swimming heady sensation, was stronger than ever.

Amelia rolled to her side, taking Lina with her. Side by side. Face to face. Kissing, and occasionally dipping lower and sucking. Lina was the first to sneak a hand down Amelia's pants and Amelia followed suit soon enough. Amelia gasped at both her own wetness and the dripping wetness that greeted her between Lina's legs. "Please…" Amelia whined out as Lina stopped moving her fingers a moment into the act.

Again they were in motion. Lina couldn't help but buck her hips against her lover. Taking Amelia's fingers even deeper into her own body while she worked her fingers in and out of Amelia. With each withdraw her panties got even wetter. Clenching, tightening, Lina kept working through it. She felt Amelia tense up, then slowly she started again. Moments later it happened again. Lina was sweating. She was getting close but she was working harder for it. The taste of the sweat was salty in her mouth and her bangs were plastered to her forehead. She kept it up, her stomach muscles cramping from the constant tightening.

"Ohh…ohhh….." Lina gritted her teeth, groaning out as she felt her emotions fall on her all at once. Amelia responded by working her fingers out of her faster, taking advantage of the sudden excess of lubrication, the almost frictionless feeling, putting her fingers as deep into her friend as her body would allow and working in a third finger for the first time.

Lina responded, moving her free hand around the princess' back and pulling her against her tightly. A third finger, then another went into Amelia. And as Lina rode out her orgasm she worked Amelia to her biggest one yet.

"La…la… Lina!" Amelia cried out, pulling her dripping fingers from Lina's panties and using them to massage her own nipples.

Lina laughed as Amelia lost control, but it came out as little huffs. She was spent. Letting out a deep breath she rolled onto her back in the moss. Bits of it were stuck to her arms and were over her hands and in her eyes from when she had rubbed them. She was sticky, wet, and with every breath she shuddered. It felt as if the organ between her legs was contracting with each breath.

Lina looked over at the princess, still in the throes of her own passion. Lina gave them both a few minutes to recover, starring off into the stars high above. Finally, she tried the waters, "Amelia…?"

"Hummm…?" Amelia answered back fairly quickly.

"Are you still mad at me?" Lina asked, tilting her head to the side in an attempt to discern the princess' reaction.

"I was never… It was just…" Amelia stopped, taking a few breaths, she was still winded from her orgasm, "I shouldn't have, we shouldn't have ever done any of this." The last bit came out defeated. Lina held her tongue, prying would do no good here. Eventually Amelia continued, "It's not love, it's lust. It's what I was always warned about growing up. They told me something like this could happen, that my emotions could do strange things, things that didn't make sense. Especially during certain times of the month when my body wanted a baby."

"Well, at least we don't have to worry about that." Lina couldn't help but chide.

"Yeah." Lina saw the smile on Amelia's face despite the darkness. "But Lina… you're not the one I love. I-- I don't know anymore, but what I feel for you--" Again she didn't know how to continue. "You're not my night in shining armor. My prince on a white horse, what we did. It might not mean anything to you since my hymen is still intact but I wanted to maintain my purity for the one I love."

"Well, I guess we could give marriage a shot." Lina joked again in an attempt to lighten the princess' mood.

"Don't get me wrong Lina, I care for you, but despite how much I've been trying these last two days, I couldn't convince myself it was love." Amelia sighed, "No matter how much easier that would have made things." She added at a fraction of the volume.

"Wait, wait a second, how do you know it's not love, we haven't even been out on a date." Lina added defensively, again, half-joking.

"Hummmm… maybe after we get back in town then." Amelia pondered thoughtfully.

"Yeah, well, it will all work out." Lina offered, pushing herself up from the forest floor and looking around for her shirt.

"Still…" Amelia started again, "We can't be doing this, any of this…." Amelia muttered defeated, "I wish we could just go back to how things were before." All at once her depression returning at the thought of a hopeless relationship and a ruined purity.

Lina turned down the look at the princess, "I can't make any promises, but I guess I can try to stop."

/\/\||/\/\-=End of Chapter 7=-/\/\||/\/\


	8. Chapter 8

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Chapter 8 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

.com

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

This is just one chapter of a multi-chapter fanfic, reading previous chapters is necessary to understand what is going on in the storyline (yes, despite the age restrictions there is a story line). Please visit the Slayers Hentai Fanfiction Archive (.com) to read previous and subsequent chapters.

*****************(Classic Snowflake Openings Rock!)*****************

**Chapter 8**

**....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}.... **

Off in the distance there was one mountain peak higher than any of the others surrounding it. In the early morning light it glistened, it glowed, it just looked special. It was mostly those previous factors, and not the crude map that accounted for Lina's faith that what they were seeking was atop the mountain they were so quickly approaching.

"It's dead ahead! We're almost there!" Lina shouted, looking back at her companions.

Zelgadiss looked at the map scratching his head. He wanted to correct her but didn't really want to mess with her mood. So long as the four of them were heading in the right direction he figured that was good enough. At least for the moment. Truth be told he was getting very anxious. He wondered if the others in the group would understand if he wanted to go on ahead via Ray Wing just to scout around a bit.

Lina kept up her pace but took another look at her friends. Gourry was downcast, his eyes were on his feet. He'd been like that since they had left that morning. And Amelia… at least she was acting more friendly, but still distant. Lina swallowed hard. She was having a more difficult time trying to figure her out than she would have ever imagined. The night before burned brightly in her mind, just thinking about it… Lina nearly tripped over her own foot, missing a step in the path. Actually, it was best not to think about it while walking.

"Okay, time to cross the valley." Lina stopped, giving everyone else a moment to catch up. Their path had looped around the base of the mountain they were traveling on. To their left was the continuation of the road, around the mountain, down into the valley, and up the next mountain. Or at least what passed as a road. Long ago it had been cut into the mountain, and apparently abandoned, it was overgrown with grass, foliage, and in places completely collapsed, but anyone could tell that at some time in the past it had been engineered. Ahead of them was a sheer drop off from dizzying heights.

Gourry preferred not to look and just closed his eyes and held out his hands. Lina smirked, "It'll be over in a minute you big baby." Lina grabbed a hand and Zelgadiss did Likewise, "_Levitation_!" They both shouted in unison, followed a moment later by Amelia. With the animals gone from the area, and taking to the air, even the background sounds of their footsteps were absent. The eerie silence of the area quickly settled in as they crossed the chasm. Lina hated it, if she had any reason to think they were being stalked she would have been totally against it. No doubt they would have made a good target carrying Gourry between mountains, but they hadn't had any trouble so far.

As expected the crossing went off without a snag. Gently Zelgadiss and Lina set Gourry down on the ground. Cautiously he opened an eye and looked down at the ground before a smile overtook his features and he gave a little happy jump. Lina and Zelgadiss landed then just behind them Amelia. "We're almost there." Zelgadiss stated, noting a landmark that gave away their position. He pretended not to notice the smug smile that Lina shot in his direction and started walking.

The grade was steeper. Unlike the previous paths that for the most part stayed horizontal, this one actually ascended the mountain. It made the climbing more hazardous, and arduous. Not long into the climb the front of Lina's legs started to burn from the endurance test.

Mercifully the four of them soon enough came across a ruin at the side of the road, likely for relay runners centuries before. Lina took a moment to sit down and surprisingly even Zelgadiss joined her by the tumbled stone shack. "You think this is going to be it?" He asked, a bit of worry in his voice.

"Maybe… we'll find out, won't we?" Lina smiled back. She wondered how much he got his hopes up any more. She knew she usually didn't. Lina never even looked at a quest with Zelgadiss as something that would earn any return on her time other than the adventure. She never really expected to cure him and she wondered if that complacency was part of the problem. That maybe since she never expected to cure him it let her give up that much easier.

They had only sat down a moment previous, but already Zelgadiss looked anxious. Lina was surprised he had held it in as long as he had. "Enough resting, let's get a move on and get to the top of this mountain!" She shouted, trying to rally the energies of her traveling companions. If it worked, it didn't work well as Gourry and Amelia looked less than enthused to push themselves to their feet once again.

"Come on you two, at this rate we won't make it there before nightfall…"

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

With the way they were traveling up the mountain, the sun setting directly beyond it, the darkness of nightfall started to come on earlier than expected. Thankfully the foursome had a particular set of ruins in their sights. By picking up their pace appropriately they made it there before the real darkness set in.

"So, what do you think?" Lina asked, eyeing the ruins, her hand to her hip.

Zelgadiss frowned, "Smaller than I was lead to believe from the passage." He grumbled.

Amelia and Gourry caught up at the rear just as Lina and Zelgadiss came to a stop at the outer edge of what was once a miniature courtyard. "Is this is?" Gourry asked, looking over the crumbling structures.

"I guess…" Amelia answered, unsure of herself and looked between Lina and Zelgadiss for assurance. In response both of them nodded their heads.

Three buildings in total were standing, each with a footprint about the size of a standard house though notably taller. Sizeable pillars, black in color, stood tall in the front of each building. Despite their height though, each building looked, at least from the outside, to only be one level. Still, the moss and craggy features of the remaining masonry work made an assessment of the buildings difficult. One of the buildings had a collapsed roof, and there were ruins of other buildings surrounding the standing structures. If what they were searching for was not in one of the upright buildings, things could end up taking awhile.

Zelgadiss walked to the door of the most stable looking of the ruins, "_Lighting_." Immediately a sphere of pure incandescent light rose from the palm of his hand, flickering and growing in size until it floated comfortably just above shoulder level. Lina nodded, moving in behind Zelgadiss, with Amelia and Gourry doing the same.

For a moment Zelgadiss surveyed the structure from the outside, reaching out and peeling a patch of dark green moss from the building to get a better look at the stonework beneath it. The action was not all that revealing, whatever features might have been in the stone were obscured by the destructive action of the moss, roots had embedded themselves fully in the stone, causing it to blacken and flake away in patches, embrittled.

"What the--!" Zelgadiss turned suddenly, just in time to catch his lighting spell sputter and flash out of existence with a brilliant luminescence.

"What just happened?" Lina vocalized first, Amelia was still slack jawed and Zelgadiss looked if anything, angry.

"I don't know." Zelgadiss said carefully. "It just disappeared, somehow it was nullified."

"Couldn't you just do it again?" Gourry offered.

Lina shrugged, "Go for it."

Zelgadiss nodded, "_Lighting_." This time the power formed a spark of light in his hand before immediately winking from existence. "A barrier?" Zelgadiss suggested after a moment.

"_Lighting_." As expected, Lina summoned a dazzling orb of light. Instead of allowing it to float though she kept it tethered to her hand and took a few steps forward, holding it in front of her through the distance.

**Tssssssszzzzzzzzz** The spell hummed suddenly and wavered. Lina stopped, holding her hand still, right at the threshold of the doorway. "A barrier." She said this time more concrete, putting her hand the rest of the way through the doorway and causing the spell to momentarily implode before flashing out of existence.

"What's that mean?" Gourry asked after no one spoke for a moment.

"It means-- we'll have to put off exploring till tomorrow." Lina finished after a moment of hesitation. Seeing Zelgadiss' irritated expression she added, "It'll be much better to explore by daylight and hopefully we can get an idea of the layout of this place. Maybe even dispel the barrier. He gazed off into the darkness, his enhanced vision giving him a layout of the room he was walking into. Sadly, it was barren. Anything from antiquity that once was in the room had long since vanished. He felt his hope fade slightly but not enough to make him complacent about the wait ahead.

"Lina's right." He finally admitted with a sigh. "Let's set up camp back on the trail for the night." Zelgadiss had a place in mind they had passed not too long previous. It was best they not camp right at the ruins. Especially considering they were unexplored and ruins occasionally had a nasty reputation for ghosts and guardians.

"Okay, sounds like a plan." Lina voiced her agreement, tossing her pack back over her shoulder and heading away from the ruins for the night, bringing Gourry and Amelia in tow behind her.

Zelgadiss hesitated a moment, starring into the darkness at one of the corridors leading away from the room he was partially standing in. Giving a sigh he finally relented, turning on his heel before running off to catch up with Lina and the others.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Despite his best attempts, Zelgadiss couldn't take his eyes off the ruins. Lina, Amelia, Gourry, and himself had camped down the mountain side from their goal. But it was still visible. Even though the moonlight was faint he could still make out the pillars, the absent rooftops, and the hauntingly dark doorways. Again he had to stop himself for the umpteenth time that night. He badly wanted to head off to the ruins alone and explore. After all, they had been traveling for nearly a month and the vindication for that time and effort could be just beyond the door.

He just wanted to say 'To Hell' with waiting for the morning. A torch would suffice just as good as lighting. But again he sighed and hung his head low, it really was best that he wait. Going through the motions of being on watch he looked over the patches of trees nearby. For the most part though it would have been impossible to sneak up on the four travelers. The side of the mountain where they had camped had very sparse foliage. Of course conversely it meant they had no cover themselves, but that was the price to pay he guessed.

"Is this it?" He wondered to himself aloud, keeping his focus on the ruins. The thought had filled his mind through the day but not so much as it did now. Certainly he didn't feel as pessimistic as usual, but that just meant to him that he had even further to fall. What would he even do with real skin again? He would have to re-learn how to fight to be certain, and he knew his magical capacity would be diminished. But would it be worth it? He loved power and always had, did he really feel like he had learned anything?

No… at least not yet. He regretted the transformation for certain, but never the power that came with it. Zelgadiss sighed, wondering if his introspective moment was a side effect of nearing a potential cure or just some fan fiction author's attempt to further the plot. It didn't really matter. At least he had the first watch, with the excitement that he was feeling, sleep seemed more elusive than ever.

Awhile later Zelgadiss fed a few more sticks and brush into the fire. There hadn't been much in the way of burnable material nearby. The few trees around were healthy, too green to burn, and oddly enough there were not any felled trees either. That meant they were stuck with green twigs and brush. The brush burned unevenly, small pieces of it catching updrafts from the fire and taking to the air, leaving Zelgadiss on fire watch as well.

Even without finding his cure though, he felt things were changing. Whatever was going on between Lina and Amelia, even if it wasn't as serious as the swordsman suspected, it still represented a shift in the dynamics of their group. It was something that didn't set well with Zelgadiss. He wondered -- what his place was in everything. What it was all leading up to.

He'd never really seriously considered himself to be in any sort of romantic entanglement with the princess he traveled with. But if somehow he did ever chance across his cure, the palace is Sailune would be one of the first places he would travel. If that was no longer the case, what could he fall back on? "Damn…" He cursed to himself, wondering if he had lost any chance to make a move, or if he even ever had the right. Maybe it was time to leave, he thought to himself.

It had always been his custom to disappear at the end of the adventure, and if he did really find a cure, that would bring this adventure solidly to a close. But then what? He hadn't really thought about that either. He didn't have much of anyone. He sighed again, it didn't matter. "Whatever will be, will be." He muttered to himself, again casting his gaze headlong through the doorway to the ruins.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Opening the flap of her tent, Lina surveyed the camp site. The fire had since burned itself to embers and the sun was high on the horizon. She wondered just why she had been able to sleep so long. And then she cursed Zelgadiss for not having woken her for her watch. For a moment she felt worry. Where was Zelgadiss? Her worry though easily grew to irritation when she realized he had probably just been too impatient to wait for the next morning to go exploring.

Begrudgingly she closed the tent flap and trudged around in the small space inside to get ready for the day ahead. Donning her gloves, shoulder guards, cape, and other accessories while hunched over before opening the tent and fully stepping out. Apparently she was the first to do so, Gourry and Amelia's tents didn't appear disturbed and either Zelgadiss had never sent his tent up or he took it down before he had left. Either way that was another point against him and it caused Lina's eyebrow to twitch.

"Gourry!" She called out, beating her hand against the side of his tent. She head shuffling inside, "Zel's gone ahead to the ruins, get ready and meet me up there when you're dressed." She heard a groan from inside and walked over to Amelia's tent, banging against the fabric, "You too Amelia, did you get that?"

"He didn't wait for us?" Amelia yawned out from inside the tent.

"Pthhhh, what'd you expect?" Lina countered before jogging off along the trail to the ruins. She was grateful that they didn't look as imposing during the day as they had the night before. Though the thought that she would be unable to cast spells inside caused at least a ripple of worry. She brushed it off, save Amelia they all had some kind of hand to hand experience with a sword and Amelia at least knew some unarmed fighting if she needed it.

Lina slowed when she entered the court yard. At one time it had all been brick. But through centuries of neglect the only bricks that were still visible were those around the base of some of the trees that had been pushed to the surface as the root systems expanded. There was more too, evidence of fountains and reflecting pools that had since become nothing more then depressions in the dirt and shapeless mounds of soil. She wondered just what the place had been. A temple? Or had it been the house of someone of wealth, or royalty? The only permanent settlements of the area were confined to legends and warnings, so who would build out here in the first place?

Promising to think on it more later, Lina entered the first of the buildings. Immediately she felt it, like a cool wind following down her back and blowing through her from behind. She wondered why Zelgadiss hadn't felt anything the night previous. Immediately she felt that her powers had been sealed. The feeling brought her to a standstill. She took a calming breath and backpedaled a few steps till she was on the other side of the doorway. "_Levitation_!" Instantly she felt herself grow lighter and lift off the ground.

She terminated the spell a moment later. Satisfied that the effects of the doorway were not permanent, at least immediately. Lina took another deep breath to steady herself and re-entered the doorway. Again she got the same sensation but the feeling quickly disappeared. The room she had entered was empty. More doors were on the far wall but there wasn't anything to be found in the way of artifacts or lighting. There was another floor above the she hadn't expected and the stonework of the ceiling shone through beams of light onto the mossy, tiled floor.

It was darker deeper in the building. She picked the door that had the best lighting and went through it, "Zel, are you in here?" She called out, not really expecting an answer but feeling better for it regardless. The next room was for the most part as featureless as the first, with one exception. In the center of the room was a fire pit. The second floor was absent in this room which Lina figured to be in the center of the building. Far above the roof was in shambles. Large timbers criss-crossed the ceiling, some rotted all the way through and in danger of falling, all thatching or anything that had one laid between them to prove the roof proper being long gone.

Slowly she walked to the fire pit, the area had been disturbed, haphazardly cleared and wiped away recently. There was an intricate magical circle there, as wide as her outstretched arms. Inside of which there were repeating pentagrams of an almost fractal design, made of folded copper or gold wire and encased in glass. "So this is the how the magic is being sealed." She realized aloud, looking over the details. It was very interesting sorcery at the least and something she might be able to learn something from later. Like a lightning rod for magic that drained into the ground.

Momentarily Lina wondered why Zelgadiss had not just destroyed it. Seconds later she realized the hassle that destroying magical circles could wreak in older ruins like the one they were in now. Sometimes it was the only thing holding them up and at other times they were there for deeper reasons, like sealing some kind of demon. Either way she didn't want to tempt it.

"Zel!" Lina called out again, wondering just when he had made it to the room she was in now. She made her way to the door on the opposite wall and again the room the greeted her was empty. Anything of value had long since been looted over the years. Surprisingly from there, another several doors where present. She eyed them warily. "What the heck is going on?" She wondered aloud walking to the middle one and looking inside.

Shockingly she was looking back into the main room she had first walked into. She turned around abruptly and looked back to the entry way a few rooms previous, it was still visible from where she was. Worried she rushed forward to the second entry way that she had spotted, and just as she had worried, came out the front of the building the same way she had come in. "Warped space, the buildings are built in warped space!" She shouted, suddenly realizing that exploring them might take quite a while.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

It felt like hours since she had started her journey, but the brief glimpses that she caught of the sun showed that much less time had passed. Time was warped too she realized grumbling. Still, she had managed to search the first building in it's entirety, even finally finding the room leading to the second floor. That had been the most challenging part, the ladder that had lead between the floors had long since decayed to nothing, leaving her with an opening about three times her height from the ground that she had no means to get into. She'd really missed levitation at that moment but by running at the wall and pushing herself off it she'd managed to make it to the second floor, which had proven itself to be just as useless as the first floor and fraught with more perils as many of the stones were on the verge of tumbling out of place and to the floor below.

Lina exited the first building and looked between the two buildings remaining. One was significantly more decrepit than the other, and that was saying a lot. She wondered which one Amelia and Gourry had gone into. Were they even together, or did each of them search a different building not knowing what they had gotten themselves into?

The warped space really complicated things, who knew how large some of the buildings were or how to get through their twisted depths. She honestly wouldn't have been surprised if she had missed a room or two in the first building she had gone through, it had hardly been linear but it was only about three times the size it appeared to be on the outside which meant that trial and error was good enough to get her through the exploratory stages.

Reaching into a pouch at her side she removed a coin. A moment later it was sailing through the air, letting fate determine things. And a moment after that she had chosen her next building.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

Zelgadiss looked between the paintings on the wall. At first things had been moderately confusing. The font that they had used, as well as the dialect was unfamiliar, despite his experience with the language. And even once he started to understand what was being said, key pieces were missing. Inscriptions, words, and miscellaneous bits were excised from the wall, leaving only chisel marks. He frowned. It was not shaping up to be as easy as he hoped. There were other oddities too. At first he had thought it unrelated, but the ceiling of the room showed an extensive star map. In the beginning he had caulked it up to setting the mood but after further inspection he realized that it was incredibly accurate.

To add to the strangeness, this was the only room that he had found so far below ground. The doorway leading to it had been carefully concealed in a wall and after descending the steps he figured he must have been beneath a different set of ruins, likely some of the ones that had been razed to the ground. The presence of a second magic sealing circle in addition to the one he had already spotted in the ruin seemed to confirm that train of thought as well as a second set of stairs leading away that were blocked with debris.

Was this it? He wondered. Every other ruin, he hadn't seen so much a trace of the previous occupants save the magical sealing circles. This one was different, hidden, and much more alive with knowledge. He looked over the runes on the wall more carefully. Some of the runes surrounded an archway to nowhere that was likely blocked off when this room had been sealed. If there was anything more to see, he would have to dig his way through the archway. He eyed the magical circle in the middle of the floor. It would have to go before he could make any real progress. When he had previously forced open the door to the stairway he had felt a weakness he hadn't expected. His demon side was dormant and he wondered what it was conversely doing to his golem side. Would his stone scale flake off to the ground, could this be a way to becoming human. "A weak human with no magical powers that changes back to a monster when he leaves the ruins." He laughed cynically, that is if the transformation didn't just kill him like when one of a pair of Siamese twins die and the other follows shortly.

Behind him Zelgadiss heard foot falls. He tensed, but had been expecting it so waited, "Lina?" He asked at last.

"There you are Zel." Lina laughed having finally found her goal.

"How did you..?"

"I smelled smoke, and I followed it." She said, gesturing toward the torch in the nearby holder.

Zelgadiss nodded, "Are Amelia and Gourry here too?"

"They're somewhere around." Lina started, looking around the room, "So, is this it?"

Zelgadiss shook his head, "I don't know what this is yet, but it might be." He admitted a moment later.

Lina shook her head with a serious look on her face, "Don't worry, we'll figure it out."

"What I can't seem to figure out, is this archway." Zelgadiss said, walking to the wall furthest from the blocked staircase. Lina followed along with him and stood in front of the archway. Fluidly she reached out with one hand but instead of contacting the solid wall in front of her, her hand went through the wall like it wasn't there.

"More warped space, what about it?" Lina said pulling her hand back out and leaving Zelgadiss wide-eyed. "Remember the entry way to the Clair Bible that Milgasia directed us to? It was just like this." She said with a smile.

Zelgadiss looked slack jawed at the opening. "So we've found it?" He said forcibly.

"Yes…" Then Lina bit her lip, "… and no." She let out a deep breath. "If it's anything like the entrance at Dragons Peak it's all warped space inside there. Not even a Xelloss could find his way through it normally." Seeing Zelgadiss' defeated look she sighed, "What we need is someone to guide us around so we don't get lost in there forever."

"Wait, what?" Zelgadiss asked cryptically, his eyes narrowing.

"Some way to figure how we can find our way to the Clair Bible." She repeated at length, wondering what he was getting at.

"This inscription over here…" He started out, walking to the nearby corner, "talks about a map." Then he jogged a few steps over, "And here too… more about a map." Then his eyes went wide with recognition, "This is the map!" He shouted, pointing at the ceiling.

Lina looked up, "Eh?"

"It's a star chart, with all the constellations, I think this might somehow be the map." He said, starting to sound unsure of himself.

"How the heck…" Lina trailed off as she looked over the details, some of the stars were in different colors, blues and reds as opposed to all the other white stars. And there was one golden star too. She wondered, could the apparent chaos of the warped space have been linked to the movement of the stars?

"But… the stars won't be like this for awhile…" Zelgadiss muttered, walking a few steps ahead and pointing to a cluster on the ceiling. "These are the stars that I normally use with my Astrolabe, they're shifted."

"Maybe they just drew them wrong." Lina offered.

"No, I don't think so, everything else is too precise. Besides, the stars are not stationary, they move… they would have to move back like this, that could be when this map is accurate."

Lina wondered if the warped space really did continue moving with the paths of the stars. That would make it even more difficult to navigate. Still, if they had a map… "Is there anything that still needs to be translated?" Lina offered, trying to keep Zelgadiss' mood lifted.

"All of it." Zelgadiss answered back, "It's difficult to translate so all I've done is tried to skim what I knew off of it."

Lina looked around the room, noticing for the first time some of the vandalism of the runes, that would make things a lot more difficult, "I'm going to go find Amelia and bring her back to help, and Gourry too, to stand around and stuff."

Zelgadiss nodded, barely aware of his friend as he buried himself in the translation process.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

"Six months!" Amelia shouted, looking to the sky as if to confirm Zelgadiss' observation.

The four of them had been in that dungeon of a room for the entire day, which Amelia guessed must have been much longer than a regular day. They had gone through about fifteen torches and she knew each one burned for quite a long time. Still, all of the translation was complete, leaving Zelgadiss with a stack of papers to go over. The key thing that they had come away with though was exactly as Zelgadiss had expected, they had to wait for a specific astrological alignment before they would be able to use the map to get to the Clair Bible and after Lina's adamant argument that to attempt to do so before the map was correct would be suicide, they decided that using the map was the only way to go.

Amelia just hadn't expected it to take six months for some stars to move around despite Zelgadiss' insistence that they had gotten lucky and that some moved much slower. But if she had faith in just one thing, it was Zelgadiss' ability to do calculations involving the stars. He was one of the best map plotters that she had ever seen and she had no reason to doubt his findings, but six months! She wasn't going to wait around that long. Not even for six weeks.

Lina whistled next to Amelia, "That's a long time Zel."

"What are you going to do?" Gourry asked.

"I'm going to stay here." Zelgadiss said at length, locking eyes with Amelia.

Amelia gulped, "By yourself?" She asked shakily.

"Unless someone wants to stay here with me." It was as close to an offer as he ever came.

"You're going to stay here, not in town or anything? That's just reckless Zel, you know how dangerous the Kakarat Mountains can be. And if you stay here you won't have any magic to defend yourself." Lina finished, unable to hid the pangs of worry she felt.

Amelia didn't know how to feel. She worried for Zelgadiss but, she didn't want to stay here in the mountains with him. She knew that before she would have jumped at the chance. Now, she worried for his safety but that was all she could manage. In that instant she realized that she no longer tied his future to her own. She glanced over to Lina, careful not to settle her eyes on the sorceress, it was her fault.

"You shouldn't stay here." Amelia blurted out, "At least go back to the town, it's too dangerous." She wanted to make herself worry more, but as much as she tried, she couldn't. Zelgadiss was going to do what he wanted to do no matter her thoughts on the matter.

Zelgadiss looked to Amelia, their eyes again locking for the moment. "Yes, it probably would be a little reckless to just stay up here on my own." He mussed in agreement.

Lina, Amelia, and Gourry all let out sighs of relief. Then, all was quiet. Silently Zelgadiss sat down around the fire with the others. Absently Lina twisted and reached behind her brining out some provisions for dinner, "I don't know about you two," She said eyeing Gourry and Amelia, "But I don't want to wait around here for six months."

Gourry nodded, but Amelia felt obligated to give a more through answer, "Six months is just a little too long, maybe we could just meet you back here?" She asked, hopeful to give some kind of compromise.

"Six months and we meet back here?" Lina asked aloud to the whole party.

"Yeah, sure." Zelgadiss agreed, looking into the fire then back to Amelia.

"That sounds doable." Gourry agreed.

"Yeah, six months." Amelia mumbled with less conviction, breaking her gaze with Zelgadiss.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

The three of them headed out the next morning, early, in order to make it back to the city as fast as possible. It wasn't a tearful goodbye. Lina was too strong to let that happen and Gourry was mostly just happy for his friend and confident to see him in six months. Amelia did threaten tears but held them in, somewhat for herself but mostly for Zelgadiss.

The trip back was uneventful, with Zelgadiss gone it was different too. The whole dichotomy of the group had changed and everyone found themselves acting differently without him. Within two days they found themselves back in the same town they had just left. Being that they didn't have the best of memories of that place they pushed onward, cutting a new path to the west until they hit a new upscale town a few days later.

Lina was worried, Amelia wasn't talking to her, Lina wasn't talking to Amelia, and Gourry wasn't talking to anyone. Something had to give somewhere.

/\/\||/\/\-=End of Chapter 8=-/\/\||/\/\


	9. Chapter 9

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Chapter 9 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

.com

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

This is just one chapter of a multi-chapter fanfic, reading previous chapters is necessary to understand what is going on in the storyline (yes, despite the age restrictions there is a story line). Please visit the Slayers Hentai Fanfiction Archive (.com) to read previous and subsequent chapters.

*****************(Classic Snowflake Openings Rock!)*****************

**Prologue 2**

**- Sairaag Continued-**

Although Eruk moved across town at a feverish pace, he immediately slowed after entering the walls of his own compound. Ascending the staircase inside the two of them eventually came to the end of a rounded hallway, "Just a moment." Eruk said softly, motioning toward the door with his head before striking his fist against it three times.

"What is it?" Gourry heard someone call from inside.

"It's your father," He began, likely keeping up formalities for Gourry's benefit, "there's someone out here I need you to speak with." Eruk explained, his voice strong and firm to carry through the door.

A moment later Gourry heard the sound of a wooden latch sliding open followed by the door gliding inward. In the doorway stood a girl, even younger than himself, early teens likely. It was her hair he noticed first, dark. Almost black, but shimmering despite the coloration and rolling over both of her shoulders. Her eyes too, green. He looked over the rest of her figure discretely. She was wearing a pastel tee shirt with stitching in the front which gave a view of her already ample cleavage that matched her loose fitting pants in both color and texture.

"What is this?" She asked, startling Gourry from his inspection.

"This is Gourry Gabriev, the bearer of the Sword of Light." He nodded in Gourry's direction and in return Gourry gave a slight nod in the girl's direction. Eruk continued, "And Gourry, this is Sylphiel, my daughter."

Gourry tried to remember his manners but failed. He quickly seized upon his first impulse and grabbed the younger girls hand and shook it, "It's a pleasure to meet you… Sylphiel." Already he felt himself struggling to hold onto her name but he was confident that if he could keep repeating it he might be able to maintain it.

Sylphiel shook back solidly, a goofy smile on her face, "It's a pleasure to meet you too Mr. Gabriev." She replied back, almost cockily and smirking more at her father than Gourry. He felt he was missing something, some joke at his expense, but put off the feeling.

"Sylphiel, Gourry has traveled here to investigate the recent troubles in the Miasma Forest. I want you to take him there tomorrow and show him everything you've told the clergymen about."

"Yes father." She responded with a sigh, the words being too artificial to mean anything beyond face value.

"Mr. Gabriev, I would hope you would be willing to accept my hospitality for the duration of your stay here. We have a room made up for you already…" Eruk trailed off as he turned to his side and opened the next door in the hallway, revealing a room the size of Sylphiel's with a freshly made bed. "Please, consider my home your own."

Gourry held back the urge to whistle, it was better than he would have hopped for. Still, he wasn't used to playing the role of savior so he had to ask, "What about dinner, and lunch… and breakfast?" He wondered aloud.

Eruk nodded, "You are more than welcome to eat your meals with us, or if you so desire I doubt there is an eatery in the whole city that would not feel privileged to cook for the descendant of the swordsman who saved this city from destruction." Eruk finished confidently, causing Gourry to feel a swell of pride. However when Gourry looked to his side to see if Sylphiel was showing any revealing emotions he found her door already closed, again squirreled away in her room.

Quickly he brought himself back to the subject at hand. "I thank you for your hospitality, I just hope I live up to your expectations." He finished honestly, hoping that the momentary dropping of character was not too informal considering the circumstances.

"Do not worry, I have great faith in you. Now, if you would please come down stairs, I believe it is nearly time for dinner."

Gourry smiled, it was a little early, but he hadn't eaten much all day and the thought of food served to perk up his appetite even more. He was left wondering though exactly what to make of Eruk's daughter. He gave the door a quick glance as he walked away. It didn't really matter he figured, she was supposed to be the one guiding him around the following day and he believed he would get a much better idea of her character during that time.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

Apparently Sylphiel was much more athletic than she looked, Gourry thought as he strained to keep up. He paused for a moment, pulling himself up and over a rock before jogging off after her, trying to close the lead that she had on him. Occasionally she would look back. It was apparent she didn't want to lose him entirely. Regardless, she had no qualms about making him struggle to keep up pace. "Come on, we don't got all day!" She called out yet again causing him to grit his teeth and push on.

The two of them had left for the forest slightly after the sun had come out. It was a bit early by his standards, and apparently Sylphiel's too, she made quite a fuss and her father had scolded her for it. Still, he had a legend to uphold so he said nothing in Sylphiel's defense. Now that he thought about it, he wondered if Sylphiel was pushing him so far as punishment for keeping his mouth shut during the exchange. They were making good time though. They had already passed the city walls some time before, exiting past a remote guard station that had no traffic at the time.

Bit by bit Gourry started to notice the prickling sensation on the back of his neck. The hairs there starting to stand up. Later as they got even closer to the forest the background noises started to fade away, birds, chipmunks… even the blowing of the wind faded away. Soon enough the two of them were left with just their footfalls. Sylphiel slowed her pace allowing Gourry to catch up to her, she had cut the rebellious streak in the face of the danger he was feeling.

"This is the Miasma Forest," She started out with her voice just above a whisper, "When the beast Zanaffar was mortally wounded he thrashed and cried out, spewing blood across the land and created a great lake of it here…"

Sylphiel's whispers seemed inappropriately loud as they started to make their way into the forest. For once though Gourry found himself in rapt attention, "The blood that poured out of Zanaffar poisoned the land, the trees became sickly, oily, and toppled. Lesser demons rose from the muck and attacked the weakened city of Sairaag-" She paused- momentarily distracted by a sound in the distance and looked ahead expectantly, "The swordsman of Light planted the great tree Flagoon in the center of Sairaag to absorb the evil Miasma left by Zanaffar… but no such tree exists here."

"Ohhh…" Was all he could think to say. It was a bit overwhelming, the place was creepy.

"People have always spotted Lesser Demons in the forest." Sylphiel started again, "Lately though there have been more of them, even people experienced with traveling through the forest have gone missing." All traces of the cocky girl he had seen the night before were missing, "A few weeks ago when I was visiting the forest I stumbled upon a pack of Lesser Demons… no one had ever seen anything like it… my father and others are worried that it is a sign of some impending disaster…" And from the way she said it, it was apparent that the thought had crossed her mind as well.

"So, we've got to kill these Lesser Demons?" Gourry concluded, trying to give off an air of confidence.

"It's not that easy… even our sorcerers in the city who are skilled enough to fight the Lesser Demons are not able to take on more than one at once. The forest enhances them, they are faster and tougher here and they can sneak up on you-" Sylphiel flung out her hand, tapping Gourry on the nose, "Just like that."

Gourry stumbled backwards and she continued, "You can't sense them here, you can't sense anything. That feeling you have now, like you walked into a humid room but without the heat, that is all you will feel…" She trailed off to let the thought sink in.

"Thanks for the warning." Gourry said through a tight throat. If what she was saying was true, he knew he would have his work cut out for him. "So, how do you know when they're coming?"

Sylphiel turned, giving him a crooked smile, "You don't."

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

The two of them had found a small alcove of trees in the forest. The oppressive feeling around them had diminished but Gourry wondered if it was only due to complacency from staying in the forest for the last couple hours. Leaning up against a tree he nibbled on a sandwich. They hadn't seen anything too out of the ordinary yet. Some claw marks on trees, ruts in the dirt, he looked at Sylphiel sitting across from him eating some berries that she had brought along. He wondered if maybe she had over exaggerated things.

Sylphiel was sitting with one leg up against her chest and the other laid out in front of her. She too had her back to a tree, he looked her over with a smile. She seemed to be warming up to him. The front she had put on the day before seemingly disappeared more and more with the time they spent in the forest. His mind continued to wander till it was pulled into stark focus, his blood running cold he noticed an unusual reflection of something buried in the dirt.

He kept still, afraid to move as he traced the shape in his mind. Following the arch of the claw, suddenly he could picture the taloned hand just under the moss that covered the forest floor, buried. It moved. His eyes widened, "Sylphiel!" He yelled, pushing himself to his feet and darting forward. She didn't have time to react as the forest floor erupted. A demon at least twice Gourry's height burst from the floor. Sylphiel covered her eyes, the dirt temporarily blinding her. Gourry couldn't afford to blink, he pushed through the sting. There was an inhuman growl, and already a claw flashing through the air, but not towards him. Gourry impacted solidly against Sylphiel, knocking her to the ground, winding them both as the claw slashed through the air overhead, the wind pressure fluttering his hair.

"Stay down!" He growled, his hand already at his sword. He withdrew the blade smoothly before the demon could press the attack, the bright new steel catching the light, signaling to the demon he wouldn't go down without a fight. The second slash of the claw was parried, momentarily staggering the demon leaving it open for a follow up attack where Gourry slashed out at its leg.

Unfortunately, the wound to the leg was only a grazing one. Gourry looked over to Sylphiel who had finished rubbing the dirt out of her eyes and was looking on in wonder. He felt a smile come to his features but he didn't have time to dwell on it as he was forced to defend himself again and again. The blows were incredible, each one causing his boots to dig into the soft earth just to brace himself and prevent himself from being thrown into a tree or onto his butt. His counter attacks seemed to be inferior too, he just the same could have been hitting a bag of sand. His blade was slowing, and knew he was leaving himself open for a counter attack every time. He couldn't keep fighting that way.

"Use the sword!" He turned as Sylphiel called out to him.

"I'm trying!" He yelled back, barely managing to roll in time to save his own head.

"The Sword of Light stupid! USE THE SWORD OF LIGHT!" She yelled, her voice cracking.

Gourry's eyes widened, he fumbled with the hilt of the sword, groping and eventually recovering a pin. He found himself thinking how much more difficult the movement was with his life on the line. Quickly the pin found its mark, the blade of the sword detached from the handle and went sailing through the air, right at the Lesser Demon, buying him a flash of time as it turned to avoid the projectile.

"Light Come Fourth!" He cried out, worried for the first time ever that the blade would not heed his call. Instead, it seemed stronger than ever, flaring up powerfully from the base. Bright. He felt his own confidence grow to new levels and without hesitation took advantage of the Lesser Demon's sudden immobility, leaping into the air and cutting it horizontally from shoulder to hip. The demon made a gurgling sound before it slid into two separate pieces on the ground. The blood from the demon sizzled as it contacted the soil, it fumed and the body immediately began to disintegrate, leaving behind a sticky mess of tar and horror just moments later.

Gourry and Sylphiel watched mute for a moment. Sylphiel was the first to speak, "You saved me…"

"Yeah, I did."

Sylphiel stood up from her prone position on the ground and walked to the remains of the demon, looking down at the now contracting pool of black, then back over to Gourry, "Thank you." She murmured, still at a loss for words, her heart beating faster than it ever had before in her life.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

Gourry followed Sylphiel closely, just a few steps behind as they made their way through the craggy tunnel. "What are we doing here again?" Gourry tried the question another time, hoping to get an answer despite previous failures.

"I just want to show you something." Sylphiel answered, pressing on ahead and causing Gourry to speed up in her wake just to keep pace.

The two of them traveled through the tunnel otherwise in silence. By the light from Sylphiel's spell he could make out the tunnel walls, they looked like roots and he wondered if the tunnel had something to do with the big tree in the middle of the city. He wished that he had a torch or something of his own though, there was just something about magic he didn't trust, something dishonest. He shook the thoughts from his head, they seemed out of place.

"It's right up ahead." He heard Sylphiel announce just ahead of him. Soon enough the tunnel gave way to a much larger room. The two of them stopped, he could hear water, dripping, one drop, then another… He tried to look out ahead but the radiance of the spell did not illuminate far enough for him to see more than the edge of a puddle.

"What is it?" Gourry asked, hoping that Sylphiel might give him a better look.

He didn't miss her boastful smile, "It's the heart of Flagoon." She whispered, in response the lighting spell floated out and away from her shoulder, settling just above a pond in the middle of the root covered room.

"Wow…" It was an honest shock, the room was beautiful. The wood of the tree which covered the walls, a mass of thick roots, didn't look the part of natural wood. Instead the roots appeared polished, like a finished piece of wood. And despite the water it didn't have a damp or humid feeling. Instead all he noticed was a relaxing sensation, and the smell of pure, clean air.

"What do you think?" Sylphiel asked with a smile.

"It's nice." Gourry responded to her smile with one of his own.

"Come on, sit down." She sat against the wall near where they had come in, leaning up against it. A moment later Gourry was next to her, leaning against the wall as well. "I just thought… after spending the last few days in the Miasma Forest, this would be a welcome change…" She paused to look around the room, "This is about as different from the forest as you can get. The tree takes that same miasma that exists in the forest and makes it life giving, energy to grow. Can you feel it?"

"I think so." Gourry answered, closing his eyes and tilting his head back to relax into the wall.

"Flagoon is right above us. Not many people know about this place though." She tilted her own head back, relaxing against the wall, "You're the first person I've brought here."

"I'm honored." Gourry stretched out his legs and felt Sylphiel shift next to him as well, her head eventually resting against his shoulder. For a moment he tensed but allowed himself to relax just as easily.

"How long are you planning on staying here in Sairaag?" She asked, rubbing her head lightly against his shoulder.

"I don't know, a while longer I guess." Honestly he wasn't sure. He hadn't seen any groups of Lesser Demons or anything else that was unusual since he first arrived and from what he gathered the Miasma forest was always just as foreboding and dangerous as he now knew it to be. "Why d-"

Without warning Sylphiel tilted her head up, silencing him with a kiss just as effectively as any assassin's dagger.

**Chapter 9**

**....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}.... **

After six days of traveling, Lina, Amelia, and Gourry finally reached the wealthy town of Moldaris just as the sun was setting. Lina lead the way, trudging in the door of the Inn. "Hey!" She called out from the doorway, not even fully inside.

The Inn Keep turned from his spot behind the counter, "Yeah?"

"Do you got any rooms?" Lina asked, this was the third place they had tried after getting to town and the hour was getting late. After spending the last four days in tents she wanted a break.

"Hummm…" The man looked over the three travelers, "We have two rooms, if you want them it will cost you fifty gold each."

"Fifty!" Lina shouted.

The Inn Keep shot her a snide grin, "Take it or leave it."

Obviously the man knew the situation of accommodations in the town and knew enough to play his cards right.

"All right." Lina huffed, making her way over to the counter, leaving Amelia and Gourry at the door.

"Pleasure doing business with you Miss." The man responded with a false smile, wringing his hands. "Rooms are at the end of the hallway under the stairs."

"Yeah, Yeah, come on you two." Lina motioned for her traveling companions and headed around the staircase to the hallway. The hallways were built low and Lina had to look up at Gourry, his had close enough to the ceiling to brush his hair back ever so slightly. At least the place seemed structurally sound. A few more steps and they had reached their rooms.

Lina stopped to think. Amelia had been hardly friendly the last few days. Withdrawn, not wanting to talk, she doubted the princess even wanted to share a room. Briefly she wondered about sticking her with Gourry, or even if one of the rooms had a double. She blanched at the idea. Without Zelgadiss around it really seemed to mess with the sleeping arrangements in some ways but really it didn't at all. She wouldn't put Gourry in with Amelia.

Lina threw Gourry his key, he caught it deftly, "Come on Amelia." She opened the door to her room, "See you tomorrow Gourry."

The swordsman nodded, "Yeah, tomorrow." And headed into his own room.

Amelia followed meekly as Lina opened the door to her room. It was a double, Lina breathed a sigh of relief. She masked it though, "Wow, finally a real bed again!" She giggled and jumped on the bed closest to the window, hoping to illicit some reaction from the princess.

"You were just in a real bed a few days ago." Amelia lamented, moving to her own bed and setting down on it

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Lina admitted reluctantly. It hadn't been the point, just that she wanted to make Amelia smile.

Amelia kicked off her boots before lying back on the bed. "I miss Zelgadiss…" She said to no one in particular.

"I kind of do too." Lina responded after a moment, "But you know how he is, we'll be seeing him again before we know it, and who knows, he might actually get cured this time." Lina added the last bit just to see Amelia's reaction.

The princess blew an errant piece of hair from her face, "Maybe."

"Yeah, who knows." Lina stared again, "I've seen him close to a cure before, but this time, I just get this feeling, you know?" Lina's question was met with dead air. She sighed and fell back into the bed herself. It seemed like it could be a long night. "Do you just want to call it a night early?"

"Yeah." Amelia muttered despondently.

Lina stood from her bed and unlaced her pants, letting them drop to her feet before taking off her shirt. Amelia laid there motionless, horizontal across the bed. Lina gave her a moment but she didn't move. Finally, Lina turned the knob on the lamp, plunging the room into near darkness, the only light provided by some nearby business on the other side of the alleyway they were abutting.

Several minutes later Lina heard the sounds of Amelia getting ready for bed. The rustle of her clothes as she squirmed out of her pants, and the characteristic sound of a was of fabric hitting a floor. Lina looked over at her friend, the details however were masked by the darkness and anything she thought she saw could have just as easily been a trick of light.

It had been a long day but Lina didn't feel tired. If anything, with Amelia next to her complete with the privacy she had been craving between the two of them, the words to start a conversation were on the tip of her tongue. But she was afraid to utter them. Their relationship, whatever it was, whatever it was doomed to become, seemed too fragile to test at the moment.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

"Are you still awake?" It was hours later and Amelia's sudden words roused Lina from her half-slumber with a start.

"Yeah." Lina responded curious. She wondered if Amelia had been laying there as she had since the light went out, just waiting for the other to make their move.

"I don't know how all of this has turned out the way it has, but I'm sorry." Amelia confessed at length to the darkness.

"Why would you have to be sorry?" Lina asked, again turning toward the princess' bed despite not being able to see anything, "The plan was my idea from the beginning."

"But I'm the one… in the bedroom." Amelia mumbled.

"And it was me in the woods." Lina added, "What we did, I don't feel bad about it."

"I know but…"

"But…"

"I guess it just wasn't the way I was expecting it." Amelia finished at last.

"And just how were you expecting it?"

"You know…" Amelia started out, clearly embarrassed despite the cover of darkness, "A long courtship, a wedding, my friends and family there." Amelia's sigh echoed through the room.

Lina was silent, despite her independent front she has always expected the same, the fact that Amelia had always dreamed of it happening with Zelgadiss and Lina with Gourry went unspoken. Lina finally replied, "You could still have that though, after Zel gets a cure…"

"Don't." Amelia responded harshly. "Things have changed between us…." Amelia huffed, "It's not the same any more."

Lina tensed, "It will all work out Amelia." It was a good general catch-all statement.

"I hope so Lina."

Again, all was quiet save the occasional drunken blurb that echoed from the bar outside. Amelia broke that peace, "Do you mind… if I sleep with you again tonight?" Amelia asked anxiously.

Lina thought on it for a moment. She did miss the princess' company. But things were already complicated enough, especially after the incident in the forest. She couldn't see how it would make things worse and it was something that they both wanted. "Sure. Just no funny business." Lina added, for the most part truthful.

Lina heard Amelia move from the bed and heard her feet move across the bare floor. A tension seemed to increase for Lina every second as the princess made her way across the room and sat down next to Lina. Finally, she felt the covers pull back and Amelia nestle herself beneath them. Slowly she felt the gap she had put between herself and Amelia shrink. Then, just as it grew to a crescendo, Amelia rested her body up against Lina's back, spooning her. All at once, the cloud of thoughts that had been whipping through Lina's head came to a standstill. Every outside noise, the patrons in the bar outside the door, footsteps in the room next door, it all suddenly went away. Leaving Lina with one question, "Amelia.." She started out low, taking her attention and receiving some slight movement in return, "Is… is this love?" Lina could hardly believe the question. The response though was not in the form of words, instead Amelia slowly moved one of her arms over Lina's midsection, then pulled up against her, hugging her from behind.

"I don't know…" Amelia began, emotions strong on her voice, "… but it would be nice…"

Lina sighed, but gave a light chuckle at the answer, "Why can't I just get a simple answer…" Lina laughed out, some bitterness lacing her otherwise honest laughter. Amelia in turn held her tighter, and within minutes she felt Lina relax, for the first time since she started. Giving a little sigh of her own Amelia let her own body relax, and finally they drifted off to the first good night's sleep they'd had in several days.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

Blearily Amelia squinted her eyes and rolled onto her side. She attempted to burrow her head beneath a nearby pillow but only succeeded in getting partially under it as she tried to avoid the harsh light of the morning. It was Lina's head on said pillow that was thwarting her attempts. The whole affair proved useful in waking Lina up.

Lina slowly started to come to, sprawled out across the bed, one leg draped over Amelia, the other off the opposite side of the bed, utilizing as much space as her small frame would allow. She too found the sun a harsh mistress, its invading light streaming through the window and cascading over her face in a distinctly unpleasant manner. Nevertheless, its presence could be ignored for a time. Keeping her eyes tightly closed Lina tried to roll onto her side to avoid the sunlight completely, however that is when it became apparent that she was not sleeping alone.

The fact of the matter was that Amelia's presence didn't surprise her. She'd been in a completely coherent frame of mind the night before and it isn't common practice to forget whom you fall asleep with. Still, the presence of Amelia did immediately get her mind rolling in a direction she didn't want to at the moment. It was enough to motivate her up and out of the bed. Feeling Lina's leg come off from over her body, Amelia peeked an eye open. She watched as Lina sat upright first, and stretched. Through the thin material covering her breasts Amelia could make out more definition than. Her eyes further drifted over Lina's flat stomach and finally down to her slender legs. Though not petite there was a definite definition to the muscles there, obviously they were the result of Lina's main form of travel, by foot.

After a moment Amelia found her eyes being drawn back up Lina's frame, tracing over the contours of her neck and finally settling on her face as she finished stretching. Suddenly realizing exactly how she was looking Lina over, Amelia immediately closed her eyes feigning sleep. Slyly she decided that it was time to pretend to wake up and get ready for the day ahead. Amelia took deliberate pains to show that, yes in fact she was just waking up, and no, she hadn't been laying there ogling Lina's body.

Occupied at the mirror Lina washed her face, her eyes catching the movement of Amelia waking up. "Amelia…" She ventured, hoping that the princess was coherent enough to respond.

"Amelia.. I…" There was a long pause, "Did I drag you into this?" Amelia shook her head 'no' but turned her head, keeping her emotions out of view, the sudden question surprising her.

"I've always…" Amelia looked up to let their faces meet before continuing, "There's always been something between us, I just, before I couldn't figure it out, I…." Amelia swallowed hard before continuing, "Remember after we fought Phibrizzo, and…" She paused again, trying to gather herself but instead loosing her control further than she expected, her throat threatening to close up on her, "And-- we thought you were dead after we woke up." Lina nodded slightly, "I... Lina, even when I thought daddy was dead…." Amelia paused before adding, "You know I love daddy very much, right Lina?" A slight laugh at the end, feeling silly for even having to say it

Again Lina nodded, "You two are so close I feel like I'd need to Dragon Slave you to get you apart sometimes." She joked despite the situation, Amelia gave a little laugh too for Lina's benefit but tears were starting to well in the corner of her eyes.

"I was so happy to have him back, I'd missed him so much and-- and-- he was everything to me…" Amelia took a few deep breaths. Seeking to relax her friend Lina took a few steps to the bed and trailed her hand through Amelia's hair, sitting down next to her, and from that angle she was at the light caught Amelia's hair just right to give it an ethereal radiance.

"Amelia, I know how much he means to you. But he's okay now." Lina tried in a soothing voice.

"No!" Amelia shouted, "That's not it…" Amelia's voice again dropping to near a whisper. "When I thought you were dead… it-- it was beyond anything I'd ever felt before." Just getting it out, the deep despair dripping from the words, and suddenly the connotations of the situation started to filter through Lina's emotional barrier. "After that I realized that I loved two people in this world, daddy… and you…"

Although Amelia's voice was shaking, Lina couldn't help but feel the confidence building in Amelia's words, and she saw a blush come to her face, suddenly realizing that this was a side to Amelia she'd only seen rarely of late. It was the same Amelia she remembered when they first met, full of confidence and enthusiasm. The same Amelia who confidently berated the Demon Dragon King in the name of justice. That untamed force of will had found an outlet yet again, but now…. "You're what I've always looked for, you're my mysterious powerful knight in shining armor, you're my hero that's always there for me. And… I never realized it before-- because I didn't think-- I just never would have thought…" Amelia trailed off, letting her shoulders slump, her eyes downcast, "Do you ever get butterflies in your stomach..?"

"I… well…" Lina faltered, being put so on the spot with Amelia's confession and its implications still hanging in the air, her mind still reeling. Amelia though pressed on, trying to mask any internal turmoil as she fired off another question. "Or do you know what love really feels like…" Impassioned Amelia continued on, leaving Lina falling behind mentally as she was assaulted by Amelia's highs and lows, "To feel love for someone--and find that they don't love you back?" Just as quickly Amelia's façade was starting to teeter, she pressed on though, moving in closer to Lina, "Will you at least give me a chance… just to--"

Lina's mind flashed back to the woods, and for a moment things slowed down, her heart beating loudly in her chest she caught her breath. Amelia right in her face she shouted, "Yes! Do I have to say it… I feel something too…" Lina whined out, walkind over to the bed and setting next to Amelia. The next words fored of their own accord despite Lina's attempt to stop them at the source, "But how can you even know what you're talking about…"

Shakily Lina took a breath, overwhelmed with the new perspective on things. "Amelia you goof." Lina mumbled out through tears. It was not quite the reaction Amelia expected. Carefully putting her feet to the ground and standing Lina walked over to the washbasin again. Lina pulled out a towel and she soaked it in the water to rinse off her face, the tears removed just as easily. "You know I suck at showing how I feel. And I really hate to cry…" She chuckled out through her tenseness again taking a moment to wipe away the new tears. "And you went and made me do both." Sniffling again Lina threw the towel to Amelia who caught it, thoroughly soaked with water, her grabbing it caused some of it to wring out on her outfit, dampening the front of it, "Sorry about that."

She hadn't said it directly, but Amelia got the feeling that things were looking up. Amelia laughed softly and wiped her own face, blowing her nose on the towel, "Hey! I was still going to use that!" Lina mock yelled.

Amelia pulled the towel away, looking at the mess she made, "You can still use the other side."

Lina shook her head, "I guess I don't need it anyway."

Amelia smiled all the wider, "Come on, hurry up!" She said rolling out of bed and putting on her pants. There it was, Lina could tell that the fire she missed so much in Amelia had returned. The younger sorceress threw her a pair of pants from the floor and she snatched them out of the air, growling at her and put them on.

"Okay then, I guess it's time to get going."

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

"Where is Gourry?" Lina wined impatiently as she thrummed her fingers across the table. The food was already on its way and although his absence would not inhibit her from enjoying her food she still felt the need to show her concern until the moment the food arrived. She felt a tightening grip on her other hand and looked to her left at Amelia, smiling lightly and gave her own smile in return. Lina's smile turned up a little at the corner, eventually becoming more of a grin as she pulled her hand away from Amelia. Slightly worried that she might take it the wrong way, but with a clear focus in mind she took the glove off her left hand, dropping the glove in her lap before giving the hand back to Amelia, who smiled widely at the treat, rubbing her fingers appraisingly over the supple skin.

Simultaneously, from the left entry door Gourry started walking into the room, while meanwhile, from the right of the room the waitress was making her way out of the kitchen. "Perfect timing!" Lina called out as Gourry sat down, his head still wet from an earlier bath. Gourry took the opportunity to shake his head, sending out little droplets of water near and far, causing everyone to reflexively shield themselves from the incoming wetness. Lina was too distracted to care as the waitress sat down two heaping plates of food, grunting audibly as the weight was taken from her strained arms. Lina looked it over, breakfast foodstuffs, pancakes, sausage, eggs, bacon, fruits, and breads. Lina moved her hand out of Amelia's control and grabbed her fork with the other, being the first to claim some quantity of the food as her own. The delectable combination of sweet and wholesome aromas filled the table as eating commenced in earnest.

Between mouths of food, Lina planned out the day, "We'll stock up our supplies today and maybe leave tomorrow morning early." Lina took a few more bites of food before continuing, "Though I'm not really sure where we're going next." She admitted with a laugh. She'd been reluctant over the previous days to decide on any destination but she knew she would have to pick one before they could move on.

She received affirmative grunts from around the table as everyone partook of the bounty. Lina did notice however that Gourry was paying close attention to her ungloved left hand. Seeing his gaze she held her hand up so he could see it and twiddled her fingers, giving him a playful look before focusing her attention back on eating. She could sense Gourry paying more attention to her than usual, and she found it slightly embarrassing. Hoping that in the course of the day things might return to normal, more acceptable levels.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

"Finally!" Lina cried out, slamming the door behind her. "What a day!" Again, she showed her usual disregard for order and unclasped her shoulder guards, letting them drop to the ground, issuing a deep thud followed by a series of lighter clangs. Sighing she stomped over to the bed and threw herself atop it, issuing a series of creaking sounds from deep within the frame. Just as soon as she got herself in a position to settle in though there was a series of knocks at her door. A little miffed, Lina swung herself back onto her feet and walked over to the door. Worn out, she simply opened it wide; she tilted her head up, taking in Gourry's figure. "Gourry?"

"Lina.. can I talk to you for a minute?" He seemed, purposeful, his posture upright and his words seemed well thought out, the complete opposite of Lina, who suddenly felt as if she'd been snatched up by the windpipe.

"Yeah, come on in." She stumbled out, stepping out of his way. Gourry walked inside, walking even further into the room and stepping carefully over the bulk of Lina's accessories which fell directly in his way. He steeled himself, remembering his conversation with Zelgadiss before he had left, he had to let Lina know how he felt. Nervously Lina made her way back into the room proper, walking around Gourry and standing in front of the bed. From outside one could hear the bar and eatery performing their duties, and the occasional shouts of patrons. But in the room it was uncomfortable. With Lina unsure what, if anything to say, Gourry spoke first.

"Lina, I just realized today that we've been traveling together just over 5 years…." He trailed off, his confidence waning slightly but hardly noticeable, Lina remained mute, "So, I was wondering if maybe, after this adventure, we should travel to your hometown. I know you said we would once before…" Hoping that would illicit a reaction Gourry again waited, Lina bit her lip lightly, wanting more than anything to be able to get away without saying anything, "I…"

She finally spoke up after a few moments, "Yeah, we can do that--" Nervous, she quickly cut herself off, looking down, away from Gourry.

He shifted from side to side uncomfortably. "It's not just that… I want you to be happy." Lina gulped but Gourry again spoke before she could formulate any kind of reply, "I want to be the one to make you happy." The only way Gourry could have made it clearer is if he would have actually said it.

Lina swallowed hard, "Gourry. I…" Her throat though had stolen her ability to speak. Hey eyes opened wide as she realized she couldn't talk.

Exhaling loudly, Gourry turned his vision to the floor, "When did you chose Amelia over me?"

Finally, it came down to the question that even Lina didn't know. She shifted uncomfortably between her feet, finally glancing up and, "What do you mean…" Lina finally squeaked out, Gourry gave a bitter little chuckle.

"You know what I'm talking about Lina."

Still being feeble Lina was finally goaded into confession, "It was just supposed to be a joke okay!" She shouted out, the pitch and treble of her voice varying greatly in just that simple sentence. For the briefest of moments Gourry felt some relief, "But it's not a joke any more…" Lina forced out, on the verge of tears for the first time since Gourry walked in.

Gourry swallowed hard, blinking, "Yeah.." He said through his tightening throat, "I didn't think so…" He trailed off, again a great and terrible stillness rose up in the room. He took a step foreword, then another, finally opening his arms and pulling Lina into a hug. She tentatively reached foreword, putting her arms around his back, his warmth and muscles obvious through the thin shirt. "I'll always just want you to be happy…" Again he trailed off as he held her tighter and rubbed his face in her hair. Lina took a few deep breaths; his scent not something she was used to and after a moment more… she felt the slightest bit of dampness in her hair.

Eventually he pulled away, turning his head to the side slightly, his face unseen. Lina tried to speak again, "I- never thought it would turn out like this."

Gourry turned to face Lina again, fresh tracks of tears apparent even in the faint light of the room, "Neither did I." He managed back with a weak smile, giving a little laugh before continuing, "So we head out tomorrow at sunrise?"

Lina nodded "Yeah…"

Gourry nodded back, trying to absently wipe his tears away as if Lina somehow hadn't noticed them, "Sleep well Lina…" And with that he turned away and went to the door, turning back as he opened it, glancing to Lina before heading out, closing it softly behind him.

Shivering Lina took two steps back, letting her butt drop onto the bed and falling completely onto it shortly thereafter. "What now…" She asked herself, rolling onto her side and looking to the window. Already the sun outside had set, throwing the alleyway into shadows. The weather lately had been colder, even after they had left the mountains. It took some time before Lina started to come back to herself. In her head she hadn't been able to realize where her feelings lay. Now though, that decision had been forced on her. But it afforded a new clarity, and Gourry's words rung unmistakably in her head, he wanted her to be happy. But, at the moment, she just wanted him to be happy. Lina shook her head clear of some particularly perverted thoughts that had seized her mind but wasn't any closer to a plan of action. The future looked bleak. If she was going to act, she felt that she had better act sooner rather than later.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

A plan had been slow to form, but once the idea had arrived in Lina's head, she had seized on it, taking it immediately as the perfect plan. If she was going to be with Amelia she had better do it right and swoon the princess. Take her out, a date, just like Lina had always imagined her first date, and like Amelia as well. Just like Amelia deserved. Make everything right for the both of them. The more she thought about it, the more perfect it fit. Sitting upright in the bed Lina walked over to the vanity, "_Lighting_." Illumination filled the little room and Lina took a moment to wash her face before heading to the door and down the hallway to the tavern of the Inn.

Lina walked over to Amelia who was sitting by the fire writing a letter, "So, are you ready for a night on the town?"

"Wha…?" Amelia started, confused.

Lina immediately answered her insinuated question, "Come on, get ready, we're going out…" Lina paused for dramatic emphasis, "On a _date_."

Amelia's eyes went wide, "A d-d-date?" She stuttered, something that Lina found amazingly cute.

"Yeah, come on, we'll have some fun."

Amelia looked around the room as if it had some bearing on her next question, "But what do you want to do?"

Lina shrugged her shoulders but it didn't deter her recent streak of enthusiasm, "I don't know, but there has to be something, and we're going out."

That earned a smile in response from Amelia, "Okay, I guess, just let me change my clothes." Amelia got up from the chair and walked back to their room and unfolded her clothes, laying them over the back of the chair. Pulling her shirt off over her head she was surprised when she saw Lina move, turning away from her. "What's wrong?"

Lina kept facing the window, "You're getting dressed."

Amelia smirked, "It's not like you haven't seen me naked before…. and more." Amelia added with a blush of embarrassment.

Still not looking to face Amelia, Lina rebutted, "Well, it's different now…"

Amelia giggled, "It's just that I know you're watching me, right?"

Immediately Lina tried to mount a denial, "No! Well, actually… yeah." She admitted meekly, finally turning her head so she caught the slightest glimpse of Amelia's bare shoulders.

Amelia smirked before tossing her shirt over her head, working her way into it. "Okay, dressed now!" Amelia called out simply for the benefit of further embarrassing Lina. Looking down at her own outfit, the road-worn red had bleached out of her clothes, now an off shade of pink. Her gloves showed less wear simply because their dark color hid the dirt better. She poked her toe out of the corner of one of her boots, then upon looking at Amelia she realized that her clothes were not much better, the belt she wore around her waist was wearing through, the tough denim-like fabric being no match for sleeping on the ground or falling down a rocky path.

"You know what…." Lina started, rubbing her chin in thought, "I think we need some new clothes, maybe we should go clothes shopping."

Amelia quickly chimed in, "That doesn't sound like much of a date to me." She chided smugly.

Lina stuck out her tongue, "Let's just see if anything's open."

A course set, Amelia started heading toward the window, while Lina meanwhile started heading toward the door, the both of them laughing as they started to pass each other half-way, coming to a stop. "You're going out the front door?" Amelia questioned.

In turn Lina smirked, "You're going out the window?" Lina continued her foreword mach and Amelia turned on her heel and started following the sorceress. Seeing the slightly concerned look on Amelia's face she simply said, "Gourry knows…"

Amelia shook her head, "I know, but…"

"No." Lina cut her off, "Gourry really knows…"

The implications hit Amelia especially hard, more so than she thought the news would have. "But…" She started, "I thought you…."

Lina managed a little smile, "Who says I don't?" Amelia didn't know what to say, she bit her lip lightly, at a loss.

"Amelia, there was a time…" She started, trying to keep strong, but her emotions right on the edge of her words, giving them a bitterness she didn't intend, "I would have done anything for Gourry… there was something incredible there…" Lina paused, staring off into space, her strong smile wilting on her face, "But… we could never make it real…" She didn't have to fight to keep in the feelings, it all felt so hollow now, "Every time we tried… to really make something happen, something magical… it just… there were all of these signs, he was perfect, we were in love, I know I loved him…" Lina stopped for a moment, her voice dropping to a whisper, "… and I still do." Amelia barely heard her finish the sentence She wasn't making much sense, but when a heart as repressed as Lina's was spilling over, it simply ran free, "But we couldn't make it real, we loved each other, but it never made itself… real." She finished, defeated, her shoulders slumping.

"Lina…" Amelia sat her hand on her friends shoulder.

Lina looked up slowly, a smile growing on her lips, "But I don't need to tell you that. We've been together long enough… watching you and Zel play back and fourth was like looking into a mirror every day." Amelia's face wilted at the thought of her missing chimera crush. "Well, enough of this depressing talk, let's get going!" Lina started heading toward the door again, Amelia keeping in step following her, out the door and through the eating area. As they passed the Innkeeper Lina purposefully grabbed Amelia's hand, smiling to the elderly man as they walked out the door. Once outside, Lina had to wonder if her plans for the evening would lead the two anywhere but to a confusing walk through empty streets. There was however something to that as well, _quality time_ Lina reasoned to herself before setting the two of them off on their way toward the center of town, not far from where they were they had been staying.

With the number of people on the streets diminishing readily with the sun missing, Lina and Amelia's footsteps were distinctly audible, but that wasn't the focus. Lina, holding Amelia's hand tightly ran her gaze over Amelia's delicate features, there was just a particular way that the rising moon light was illuminating her. It distinctively light up some areas and darkened others, her cheeks appearing most beautified. But not just that, her illustrious dark hair, black in the lighting, shimmering, reflecting the moon light gloriously as it came to peaks and points. "Amelia…" Lina tried.

"Hum.." Amelia turned up her head slightly to catch Lina's vision.

"Never mind…" There were just some things you never said out loud, simply because it was too hard to get them straight in your head.

The light towards the end of the roadway became more apparent, it was faint but as they turned the corner they entered into the town square. "See, there are things open."

Amelia looked around, "And when did I say there wouldn't be, hmmm?"

Lina looked down to catch Amelia's eyes, "I could have sworn you doubted me."

In an exaggerated tone, Amelia mounted her reply, "Oh, I am so sorry. I will never doubt you again." Amelia finished with a little curtsy, bowing to Lina.

"Humph!" Lina turned away in mock-insult, "Now let's see what's still open." They walked into the rectangle that made up the center of the city, surrounded by buildings at least two stories tall. In the center stood several light poles, illumination spells cast on their peaks in a park-like setting, some trees and such finishing up the foliage. Around them though the walls of the square were lined with stores. Due to the late hour many of them seemed closed, but still, despite Lina's worries the other half were markedly open.

Walking around the artificially lit square hand in hand Lina noticed that there were still quite a few people out. Of those people though, many looked to be in the same situation. Young couples holding hands were what they passed the most as they made their way around the center of the town. Finally they came to a clothing shop that didn't look like it was quite ready to close, brilliantly lit from the inside by duel illumination spells, the casting of those spells being a lucrative racket in small towns to extend the hours of shops. "Welcome!" The lady at the counter shouted as Lina entered, keeping Amelia in tow with their joined hands.

Lina smiled nervously at the woman behind the counter, her weight fell on the lighter side as it came to seamstresses. She was fairly thin but just as tall as Lina, maybe into her thirties. The three of them were the only ones in the shop and despite the fact that this person had no connection to Lina or Amelia, Lina's next sentence took considerable will power, "Me and my … frie-..girlfriend need some new clothes." Amelia squeezed her hand and she turned, somewhat shocked by the smile on Amelia's features. The lady running working the counter though wasn't shocked, or at least she hid it well. Or maybe it was just a regional thing; girlfriend in some areas simply could mean a girl that is your friend. These things passed through Lina's thought process, but she was sure the lady must have understood the meaning, she'd been too nervous for it not to have that undertone.

She walked out from behind the counter, "We've got some nice outfits over here-" She gestured for them to follow her as she made her way to a set of racks against a back wall. "Here are some of the dresses we got from town, they're more expensive but they're the latest fashion." Looking over the duo she mussed, "I don't think we have anything like what you're wearing though." The off-hand comment almost caused Lina to take offense, but the lady quickly continued on, pushing past a few dresses against one of the sides of the rack, continuing her hand motion and trailing her fingers across the top shoulders of several dresses, finally motioning toward the back of the store, "Anyway, the changing rooms are in back and if you need anything I'll be over at the counter wrapping up my books." And with that she bowed and excused herself to her work.

Flipping through the outfits, Lina eyed over all the styles, mostly varying by color rather then actual dress design. Amelia watched Lina with a critical eye, "You're actually going to buy a dress?"

Lina looked up from the rack, "Well, I was thinking about it." Amelia snickered, prompting Lina to go on the defensive, "I've wore dresses before!" She retorted, trying to keep her voice restrained indoors but still letting it come out louder then intended.

Amelia piped up, "Once."

Lina shook her head, "Come on, at least three times."

Amelia wasn't giving in, "Tell me two times you've wore a dress then."

Lina looked thoughtful for a moment, "There was that one time… in that city with all the women…" She struggled, valiantly trying to remember the name but ended up pausing, leaving a silence that just felt awkward, forcing Lina to start again, "Just give me the benefit of the doubt, you've seen me in a dress at least twice!"

Finally Amelia nodded, "Okay, _maybe_ twice, but that's it." Satisfied Lina gave a smug smile, flipping through the dresses again and inspiring Amelia to do likewise.

All in all the experience was a fun for the two of them. After several wardrobe changes on Amelia's part and a few false starts for Lina, the two of them finally ended up with new outfits. Lina had managed to pull a fast one on Amelia while she wasn't looking however, ending up for the most part with basically a newer version of the same outfit she had been previously wearing. Pants, shirt, new gloves, she had somehow wandered off to the men's area while Amelia had been busy in the changing room. "If you were just going to pick from the men's side, why'd you try to convince me that you were going to wear a dress?" Amelia mulled over as the two of them left the store.

Lina stuck out her tongue, "Well, I got you to admit that I've wore dresses before, so I figured that was like me picking out a dress tonight." Amelia wasn't buying the cute act and the impulse to hit Lina on the shoulder came, then went. She sighed heavily looking over Lina's outfit, it was nearly the same as always, Amelia was certain that Lina had been trying to match her usual outfit down to the exact color, the most noticeable features being that the colors were a few shades different than usual.

Looking down at her own outfit she felt tricked. It was similar to the one she normally wore as an emissary of her kingdom. The quintessential dress, billowy at the bottom, frilly, though at Lina's insistence she'd gone with a darker color than usual and just a little less gaudy. The shades of blue and tan matched her normal outfit in many ways, but in the guise of the delicate dress, didn't seem to convey Amelia's personality to the same extent, at least the Amelia that Lina knew. Still, Amelia had to admit to herself that something just seemed right about her dressing up tonight, even if Lina had opted out of it. There was just something to it…. A wave of nostalgia hitting her as she felt herself settle somewhat into the role she'd been raised to play.

Turning to Lina, Amelia had to ask, "So, we're all dressed up, where to?" Lina looked around the square, they'd already walked around once when they first got arrived and already more shops had closed, even the initially promising theater. The theater though had proved to be a disappointment, upon further inspection it showed itself to only be showing shadow puppets that night, something neither of them would have been much impressed with.

"We already ate dinner…" Lina started out, afraid that maybe her suggestion might be shot down, "But we could go to a restaurant and just get something light to eat, and then we could go back to the hotel after that…" Amelia's smile showed that food was always a good idea with the princess and Lina again locked her hand with Amelia's and the two of them wandered to one of the last eateries open in the square. At least the last one that didn't look like a place where mercenaries and thugs hung out.

Despite the hour, the restaurant was nearly half full of patrons. Lina looked it over, a fairly nice establishment with a good waiter to customer ratio. Good because she didn't like to wait. But… they weren't that hungry anyway. Lina and Amelia were quickly shown to their seats, "So are you two ladies expecting the company of your gentlemen anytime soon?" The question had been asked innocuously enough, but it seemed there was some undertone there, for a moment Lina contemplated on giving a witty little quip, but decided on the truth.

"Nope, we just came here for a good meal." The waiter saw no reason to pursue that line of questioning and excused himself, leaving the two of them with a menu. Without prompting Lina reached across the table, ensnaring Amelia's hand again. For the briefest of moments their eyes met as they looked over the table at each other.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

For once the food was not the center point of the dinner table and as the night wore on its importance continued to drop. It did serve a purpose though, simply to get them to sit down together. Away from the men, a comfort started to settle in. Lina's defenses dropping, and for the first time in a long time she felt free to just… talk. She talked about everything, and Amelia, be it from past experiences, or simply because she couldn't get enough of Lina's stories, silently sat through every minute of it, knowing how much Lina loved to talk. But with the food gone, and the bill paid, they were again put into that uncomfortable situation outside, where their course of action would again lead them back to the inn, signaling an end to their night out together.

Tapping Lina's shoulder, Amelia started, "You know, I've been thinking…" She paused, looking around at the cityscape, "Maybe we should rent a different hotel room tonight… this will be our last time in a bed for awhile, and wouldn't you like to share a big bed with me?"

"Hum? That's pretty direct of you Amelia…" Lina trailed off, letting her altered take on Amelia's words come across, but instead of getting a defensive reaction Amelia blushed, adverting her gaze off to the side. There was no retaliation, and all at once Lina started to feel a bit of nervousness. She recovered quickly, "Well… You know, I was just thinking the same thing." Lina covered with a smile. Amelia happily moved in and gave Lina a quick kiss on the cheek. "Oh!" Lina exclaimed, her eyes widening, and bringing her hand to her cheek. Quickly composed though she finished, "Yeah, let's go to a decent inn for the night, none of this bargain basement crap for us, ne?"

The luminosity of the area dropped slightly, one of the lighting spells in the middle of the square expired. Lina snickered, "These amateurs casting these spells… pathetic."

"Uh hum." Amelia replied in agreement. Together they walked over to the small more natural area in the center of the square, its brightness now only half before. Lina found herself a comfortable spot on a bench, looking inward towards the trees growing there.

"It's starting to get cold out here…" Amelia mumbled, her breath beginning to tinge with frost as she talked. Lina for her part was not uncomfortable in the cold, but she was concerned for Amelia.

Looking over at the younger girl, Lina noted that although her dress had bulk, it was open to the atmosphere beneath. Her eyes continued to trail along its edges. In the light, backlit, just the most basic form of the dress was visible, that, and Amelia's face. Placed perfectly against the lit backdrop, her eyes had a particular gleam to them… Not realizing exactly how distracted she was, there was a sudden moment of panic as she realized Amelia was looking her over in turn, causing Lina to blush and Amelia to smirk. Something about 'turn about' coming to Lina's head for a moment but quickly replaced by something else indescribable, just a feeling, nothing words were meant to convey.

Slowly Lina started to close the distance between the two of them. She leaned in, and in response Amelia brought her face in too. Their lips now touching, Lina moved in ever so slightly, putting just the right pressure into the kiss. Her muscles tense, then…. Relaxed, she let it go. Before there was an apprehension there, the feeling that what they were doing was not right, the kiss deepened. Lina pushed foreword more, pressing Amelia's head back slightly as Lina lifted up, putting herself slightly over Amelia, into a dominant position and moving her arm behind Amelia's back.

Lina moaned into the kiss as Amelia dropped backward along the bench, her legs hanging off the side, but Lina now laying atop her. Their kiss broke for a moment before Lina pecked a few more over Amelia's face, causing her to giggle. Lina though was serious, "I can't believe how _right_ this feels….I've never been able to--" Lina laid out more fully atop the princess, nuzzling into the space in the crook of her neck.

Amelia giggled nervously, "You know… this bench is pretty uncomfortable…" She managed out, slightly winded from Lina's weight pressing her down awkwardly.

Forcing herself to sit upright, Lina faked some effort so as to make Amelia realize what kind of incredible task she was asking of her. Amelia pushed herself up slowly from the bench, just as the remaining nearby light spell flickered and faded. Putting the whole area into darkness. Looking around they realized most of the shops were closed as well, and most of the illumination still present was coming from the stars and moon gathered above. "You think maybe we should get to that inn?" Lina breathed out, the coldness of the air starting to creep into her bones. Amelia's nod was hardly visible in the darkness, but when she grabbed Lina's hand, the sorceress followed.

/\/\||/\/\-=End of Chapter 9=-/\/\||/\/\


	10. Chapter 10

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Chapter 10 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

.com

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

This is just one chapter of a multi-chapter fanfic, reading previous chapters is necessary to understand what is going on in the storyline (yes, despite the age restrictions there is a story line). Please visit the Slayers Hentai Fanfiction Archive (.com) to read previous and subsequent chapters.

*****************(Classic Snowflake Openings Rock!)*****************

**Chapter 10**

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

The innkeeper had been a little shocked to see the two women enter his establishment traveling alone at such a late hour and requesting a room. He guessed from Lina's outfit that she was a sorceress, and he also guessed from Amelia's outfit, however accurately, that she was a dignitary of some sort. His assumption that the sorceress was the dignitaries' bodyguard though was slightly inaccurate. Nonetheless, these lines of thought lead to some inflation of prices. Despite the price hike Lina was quick to pay the man and get on with the night. She had felt a sense of urgency that she hadn't been able to place on the walk to the Inn and she was eager to get herself alone with Amelia.

With the transaction quickly complete, Lina rushing herself so much as to fumble the coins out of her fingers, they made their way to the room. Lina opened the door to their room slightly. Immediately she spotted a set of candles, some lined up hanging on the wall, and a few more on the bed stand. With a flourish she shut her eyes and snapped her fingers. All at once the room lit brightly for a second then dimmed as the wicks of the candles took fire. Amelia looked into the room, then back at Lina, her face sour, "Show-off." She deadpanned, causing Lina to give a grin. Lina stepped inside as such she shucked off her cape and Amelia headed over to the large chair sitting near the bed.

Amelia plopped down in the chair letting out a deep breath. Pulling off her tight fitting boots (that of course didn't match her outfit) with a sigh before leaning back into the chair's cushy confines. Lina sat down on the bed across from Amelia and did likewise, removing her boots before flipping onto her stomach on the bed, her head propped up between her hands, letting her look right at Amelia. For some reason she expected it to unnerve the princess, but it had no such effect. Instead Amelia yawned exaggeratedly then reached down to her dress, between the folds where it was around her waist. "These things are so uncomfortable…" She muttered to herself as Lina could see and hear clasps being undone and strings being untied. In short order Amelia pulled off her corset, the particular style not just molding Amelia's stomach but also her hips and even lower.

Once again comfortable, Amelia smoothed down the sides of her dress and propped one of her feet up against her butt on the chair. Lina took off her gloves in turn, taking a moment to admire their newness, it was after all the first time she had made the investment in new attire in quite some time. "So…," Amelia started, shifting again to get comfortable, "I had a really good time tonight."

Smiling widely she waited for Lina's reply, "So'd." Amelia beamed back a smile, "Too bad we can't get used to this right?" She finished with a smile causing Amelia to pick up the conversation.

"Life on the road can be tough, that's what you've always told me, so we should really take the time to enjoy this bed tonight."

"Yeah," Lina nodded, "I get sick of sleeping on the ground but we really don't have a choice unless we want to bring a mattress with us…" Lina giggled at the thought of Gourry, and how irritated he would be if she asked him to carry a mattress for her. After the thought passed though, Lina had to again fight down a sickly feeling inside. Doubt began to fight and struggle again to control her but she held it inside. Again Amelia shifted. Her form was lit by the candles around her, imposing a golden cast to her features. As Lina was looking her over, Amelia slid down in the chair some more, scooting her butt more towards the edge, and causing her skirt to ride up along the edge of the chair.

"Do you think… Zelgadiss knows?" Amelia asked, her voice dropping a few decibels, Lina nodded her head.

"Yeah, he probably figured it out before we did." Lina finished justified, causing Amelia to accept her logic.

"Lina, I..," Amelia slid down into the chair more, her skirt riding up even more until it barely covered the tops of her legs. Lina's vision was pulled there by the movement and instantly found something to focus on. There, in the light of the candles Lina could make out, just barely, a spot between Amelia's legs, darker than the rest, and ever so faintly she could see Amelia's patch of hair there, she gulped.

"…so have you really figured out what we were going to do? Lina tore her eyes away from Amelia's crotch for a moment.

"What?" Obviously confused.

Amelia repeated herself, "Where are we going after this?" Amelia summarized.

"I-…" Lina started out, interrupting Amelia and testing her vocal cords, "Ca-can I see it…" She almost choked as her embarrassment fought to completely decimate her ability to get any point across, and she wilted upon seeing Amelia's confused expression. Summoning her courage she tried again, "Can I.." Deciding that maybe the direct approach was the best, Lina rolled off the bed onto her feet and moved in front of Amelia, dropping down on her knees in front of her, grasping the frilly edge of her dress, "Can I…" She tried again, hoping against hope that Amelia would get the point. And judging from the embarrassed smile, and a look, which indicated she wanted to bury her face like an ostrich, Lina guessed she got the point. Amelia managed a nod though, and that was all the permission Lina needed.

Taking a deep shuddering breath Lina pushed Amelia's skirt up to her hip, exposing her. "Hey!" Amelia started, quickly putting her hand on Lina's, be it from second thought or reflex. After seeing Lina's questioning look she swallowed hard, sitting more upright before leaning her head back submissively, giving Lina the access she wanted. Gently Lina reached up and put her hand on Amelia's chest, giving a little push backward. Amelia took the command and leaned back into the chair, her breath suddenly becoming shallower as she felt herself becoming more exposed and vulnerable.

Gradually Lina raised up from her knees, bringing her face to face with the princess and ending her ascent with a deep kiss. Amelia gasped longingly into the kiss, which prompted Lina to reach up her hands to cup Amelia's breasts through the dress. Taking small steps forward Lina set herself right in Amelia's lap, straddling the girl in the chair and rubbing her crotch against the princess' stomach.

Amelia's heavy breathing was confirmation enough and Lina stepped back before reaching to the front of her pants, fiddling with them before finally pulling her hand away with her belt. She dropped it to the floor, a dull thunk as the leather struck before the buckle. She pushed her pants off from around her hips and stepped out of them.

Seeing Amelia just sitting there Lina prodded, "Do you.. need some help…" She felt the last words squeak out, her voice nearly cracking. Despite the previous two encounters, she didn't want to be the only one naked. Something was different this time.

"What.. What do you want to do…?" Amelia managed, her voice just above a whisper. There was an innocence there that Lina hadn't expected.

"Amelia… You're the one that always talks about letting 'The True Power of Love' be your guide." Lina started, "Why don't we just see where the night takes us?"

Nodding with a bit of vigor Amelia reached down and unclasped the bottom of her dress, letting it fall to the floor, leaving her lower half bare. Lina had meanwhile lifted her shirt up over her head, but was still clad in her underwear despite her superior attire removing ability. Lina looked down over her body. By the candle light strange shadows were cast over her curves, she wished… hoped that Amelia found her body attractive like she was finding hers. Steeling herself Lina reached around her back and unclasped her bra, pushing the straps over her shoulders and letting it drop to the ground, covering herself with her hands. Her embarrassment built to a head as she reached down and pulled the knot on the little string holding her panties up before hooking her fingers in them ready to pull them down.

Taking the easy way out, Lina backed up to the bed and pulled back the covers, getting beneath them while simultaneously removing her panties, never revealing herself fully to her soon to be lover. Amelia though was distracted during Lina's retreat with her own undressing; it took her a few minutes to successfully manipulate the clasping mechanism of her new outfit. There was an audible 'click' as it opened up, a successful sound if ever there was one. Unconsciously Lina's mind harkened back to the opening of a treasure chest. Amelia tucked her hands beneath the edge of her outfit and pulled it up and over her head. Finally clad in just her bra.

Lina held her breath, before her in the candlelight she took in Amelia's body. It was something she'd seen before, but never in this way, never with her perspective influenced by this kind of desire. Coyly Amelia reached behind her back, pulling off her bra with no further hesitation. Slowly Amelia covered her breasts, "Wh-what do you think…?" She stood there shyly, a blush seemingly spread from her face and over her body in the ambient glow.

"I… you're beautiful." Lina finished assertively, secretly hoping that Amelia would return the compliment, but believing that she wasn't worthy of such praise.

The dark haired girl walked over to the bed and pulled up the corner of the bedspread, putting herself beneath it. It was a larger bed than they had at the other inn, however it was nothing huge, more of a double rather than a single. Plenty large enough for the both of them though when close quarters was not a problem. Amelia rolled into the bed, content for the moment on her back. Lina seized upon the opportunity, however timidly, and rolled onto her side, putting her leg and arm over Amelia's smaller frame. "Amelia… I…care for you but…" Lina swallowed hard, trying to put her thoughts to words, "I… I don't think I know if this is what love is…"

Her eyes widening, Amelia rolled slightly, bringing her other non-trapped arm around to pull Lina in closer to her. "Lina… don't be ashamed. That time in the woods, back in the city…" Amelia paused, swallowing hard, "That's why I couldn't face you, because I wasn't sure, because… but tonight…." Amelia trailed off, tears in her eyes.

Unexpectedly Lina let out a light laugh, but quickly explained, "Sorry, I was just so nervous you wouldn't say anything." Then smiling Lina positioned herself just into the crook of Amelia's shoulder. Her face pressed against her breast. Timidly, she inched her face foreword. Illuminated from behind, and just out of her reach, Lina could see Amelia's nipple standout amongst the rest of the flesh there. Amelia looked down shocked as she felt the faintest brushing of Lina's lips across her skin, then, she had taken her nipple between those same lips. The gentleness before was replaced by a more assertive feeling. But as the surprise started to fade, and Lina's hand came up to Amelia's other breast, stroking the nipple there.

Lina felt the small bumps and details of Amelia's nipple with her tongue. She wondered what Amelia wanted next, hoped she wasn't going to move too fast like they had all the other times. This time she wanted to go on more than just instinct. Lina closed her teeth gently on Amelia's nipple and in return her body tensed. Slowly the nipple began to harden under her attention, as did the one she was rolling between her fingers. Lina pulled back an inch, licking her lips, hearing her heart pounding in her head before moving back in. Finally Amelia's response moved past the autonomic. Lina could feel the change in Amelia's breathing as she started to submit herself to the attention. It was so different than before, to do this with someone she cared about.

"Hey!" Lina cried out, suddenly realizing that the princess was in the process of pleasuring herself. Lina stopped her attention on the nipple and tilted her head upward, eliciting an embarrassed smile from Amelia. Lina moved in and gave Amelia a firm kiss on the lips. Amelia forced her mouth against Lina's and groaned deeply into the kiss. Prompting Lina to repeat her feet.

Again, Lina moved in, this time kissing Amelia even more fully. She moved her whole body in, her chest pressing against Amelia's chest as she encircled her own arms behind Amelia's neck. Lina pulled herself against Amelia tightly and kissed her fully on the lips. Lina caught up in the general overwhelming quality of the situation allowed her small tongue to come out between her lips, running it over Amelia's and trailing it along her cheeks. Occasionally she would bring her tongue back in, to dot wet kisses along Amelia's features, but the most passionate part for Amelia was when Lina brought her lips once again to her own, running her tongue along them, and tempting Amelia into letting her own tongue come out as well. Their two tongues met just outside Amelia's lips. Gently they brushed against one another, their inexperience made up by their passion, the tips of their tongues just barely sliding past each other, their kiss closing slowly with their tongues between them, Amelia soon found Lina's tongue inside of her own mouth.

Lina half-broke her embrace of the princess to free up one of her own hands to use on herself. She was already slick with passion and tried to catch up with her lover. She rubbed her pelvis against Amelia's hand, spreading her juices over the back of it as she moved her own hand back in to continue building herself to pleasure.

The sensation for Amelia was incredible. Lina's tongue in her mouth, Lina's body against her own…. Amelia reached up with her right hand and continued pleasuring herself with her left. She grabbed Lina's other hand, and although confused, Lina let her hand be lead down between Amelia's legs. Lina's hand was soon pressed up against Amelia's hand as she rubbed herself. Lina could feel the wetness that had worked its way between Amelia's fingers. The excitement started to reach a certain breaking point, Lina bucking her hips involuntarily as she passionately kissed the princess.

At this peak, Amelia writhing against her, grunting into her lips, Lina broke the kiss, trailing a few odd kisses from Amelia's mouth, and pushing Amelia's head to the side to get to her neck. The temptation had flashed through Lina's mind, and it wasn't in her nature to resist. With Amelia right on the edge, Lina started licking at crook of Amelia's neck. The licks transformed into little nibbles, and finally to Lina playfully biting into the area.

Between her own attentions, and Lina's feral actions, it was enough to overload Amelia. "Oh… Lina…. I…I!" Amelia forced out, her body going stiff for a moment, before once again slackening. After a moment, Amelia weakly tried to protest to Lina's continued assault on her neck. "La-Lina… .stop… it… you shouldn't…" Amelia pushed against Lina with her arms. For a moment Lina contemplated continuing her assault despite Amelia's protest, they seemed at best half-hearted, but discontinued regardless.

Now able to focus more on herself, Lina redoubled her efforts and the princess decided to help by bringing up her slick hand from her sex and rubbing Lina's nipples. But after driving her lover so thoroughly over the edge, Lina was not far behind. Lina tensed and issued a series of squeaks, bucking her hips strongly against Amelia while rolling off to the side gasping.

Reaching up with a limp arm, Amelia ran her hand over her wet, abused, neck. "What… made you think… to do that…" Amelia breathed out, opening her eyes and trying to catch Lina's gaze.

Lina's smiled, winded, "I just… I remembered something I read about Golden Dragons once…"

"Huh…?" Amelia prompted for more detail.

"It's just… when they mate… there's a nerve cluster there, and…" Again Amelia could tell that Lina was leaving something out so she gave her a little nudge.

"And…"

Lina started reluctantly, "The males always bite the females there… to show.. uh.. dominance." Lina finished weakly, expecting at the least, a sarcastic comment. But she wasn't expecting the laughter.

"Oh Lina…" Amelia reached up, wiping away a mock tear, "Leave it to you to think of Golden Dragons at a time like that…"

Lina smiled, "Well, I guess we're both kind of clueless when it comes to… I guess this is sex… I just went with my strong point." A little bit of her confidence showing through. But her tone changed to seriousness, "So, how did it compare to the last two times?"

Amelia swallowed hard, "It.. it was great… just don't do the biting thing again."

Lina smiled back, "And why's that?"

"Because…," Amelia though couldn't keep up her serious front, a smile peaking through, "Who said you were the dominate one?"

"No one needed to say it!" Lina quickly moved back in, playfully overpowering Amelia's attempts to overpower her, and again got to the soft area at the nape of her neck. Her little nips were not like before, the area had gone cold and at first there wasn't much resembling the passion before, to Lina they were still just playing, until she felt Amelia start to go limp beneath her ministrations, her initial struggles falling away entirely. "Wow…" Lina mouthed, still loosely grasping Amelia's neck in her mouth, "It really does work.." She said in wonderment as she realized how quickly it had made Amelia subservient.

"Okay…" Amelia managed out, "Maybe you are the dominant one." She conceeded with a smile.

Rolling onto her back, Lina looked to the ceiling for a moment. She laid her arm out to the side, inviting Amelia into her embrace, an eager Amelia willingly accepting, moving in with her head against Lina's breast. They settled there for a moment, "Amelia, I… I care about you…" Lina tried to say the words but she was happy nonetheless, she was close enough for now. She looked down at the smaller girl who had turned her head upwards to meet her gaze.

"Are you sure?" Amelia ventured unsteadily. Lina nodded. "Oh Lina!" Amelia shifted and turned her body, so she would be entirely on top of Lina. Initially Lina was caught off guard with Amelia now laying atop her holding her tightly. But eventually Lina settled into the feeling, putting her own arms behind Amelia's back and pulling the smaller girl against her protectively, her eyes watering.

"I don't know what I would do without you." Lina got out honestly. But the emotions were becoming too much for Amelia, suddenly she pulled away from Lina, pulling up her legs and using her momentum to push her body into a standing position, however unsteadily on the bed.

With a leg on either side of Lina's naked body, and standing over the sorceress, Amelia started one of her long held in triads. "Lina, no matter what you say, I can feel your love burning inside me… I know that nothing will be able to stop us!" Amelia motioned widely with her hands, pivoting slightly, "Any obstacle we come against will surely fall, and any difficulties we come to will surely crumble in the light of my love for you!" Amelia looked down, pointing at Lina, "And together with love, and in the name of justice, there is nothing that we will not be able to do in our life together!"

Lina gave a smirk, "You know, I think your speeches are even better when you're naked." She winked a bit to emphasize her point, one of her fangs just making its way over her lip in the smile. Amelia's smile though quickly dropped away as she 'eeped' and took a step back. Unsteady on the soft mattress she nearly lost her balance and fell head first off the bed, but managed to recover at the last second. Instead she managed to fall butt first on the much more forgiving mattress. Lina lifted up into a sitting position and leaned foreword, outstretching her arms and pulling Amelia into her embrace. "You're such a goof…."

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

"Is it really-- do you think you might….you know-- love me?" Amelia asked, her eyes full of worry and a pillow clutched to her chest. What a thing to wake up to, Lina thought to herself, shielding her eyes from the ascending sun.

"I-- yeah… maybe." Lina said blearily, watching the princess who was herself on the verge of tears.

"Oh, Lina!" Amelia pounced on her from across the bed, slamming into her and pinning her against the bed, a pillow between the two of them. Apparently that was enough to keep the princess fueled with emotion.

"Jeeze, come on, it's okay." Lina tried to ward off the affection but found herself enjoying it despite herself. "Come on, we got to get going or Gourry is going to be worrying about us."

Amelia sat up, "Yeah." She turned to look to the sun, it was already much higher in the sky than it usually was when they broke camp. It must have been due to them sleeping so peacefully with such a big weight off their minds.

Rolling from the bed and to her feet Lina started to get dressed, collecting her clothes from the heap near the bed. She looked them over, the new outfit looking much better in the morning light. "Good thing we kept your old clothes, you really can't travel in that- Now can you?" Lina said, pointing toward the dress on the floor.

Amelia nodded, "But it was worth it to have that night with you." She finished with a smile which proved contagious.

Expertly Amelia and Lina got dressed for the day and headed out. Their Inn was only a few blocks from the Inn where Gourry had spent the night. Rather than belabor the endeavor the two of them chose to enter through the Saloon style double doors into the dining area. Gourry was already there eating some breakfast.

"There you are!" Gourry shouted up from his food, "I was worried about you two, where were you at?" He asked earnestly, slowing his eating slightly and waiting for a response.

"You know, I just figured we needed some new clothes so we went out early to the shops to pick something out when they opened." Lina covered smoothly while her and Amelia sat down to join the swordsman.

"Hummmm…" Gourry looked to the rafters then to Lina, "What about last night though? I stopped by and neither of you were there?"

"Sleeping." Lina said succinctly.

"Oh, okay…" Gourry muttered, he didn't feel like bringing up the fact that he had tried the door knob only to find the room empty. Gourry looked between the two sorceress', "So, where are we off to today?"

Lina took a moment to flag down a waitress before responding, "I'm not sure…" Lina grumbled, "Saillune…. Zephilia…." She mumbled, the connotations clear.

"Sairaag?" Gourry offered unexpectedly causing Lina to stop and catch his gaze.

"If you want…" Lina answered at length.

Gourry nodded, "Just another option."

Lina looked between Amelia and Gourry. The princess was anxious and had put her hand in Lina's lap but was trying to hide her feelings from the swordsman. "Well, we're not going to get anything settled just sitting here. We don't have to make a decision today, Sairaag and Saillune are both in the same direction, we have till the paths split to figure it out. Sound like a plan?" A chill crept up her spine, it felt like she was only delaying the inevitable.

"Sounds like a plan to me." Gourry agreed with a nod.

Amelia agreed with an enthusiastic "Um hum!"

"Okay then, we head out right after breakfast." Lina decided. Finally she felt a plan coming into shape in her mind, there was just one thing she had to act on first.

/\/\||/\/\-=End of Chapter 10=-/\/\||/\/\


	11. Chapter 11

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Chapter 11 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

.com

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

This is just one chapter of a multi-chapter fanfic, reading previous chapters is necessary to understand what is going on in the storyline (yes, despite the age restrictions there is a story line). Please visit the Slayers Hentai Fanfiction Archive (.com) to read previous and subsequent chapters.

*****************(Classic Snowflake Openings Rock!)*****************

**Prologue 3**

**- Sairaag Concluded-**

During his stay in Sairaag, Gourry had found that dinner was a big affair at Eruk's home. It was one of the few things the man was stringent about with him. Luckily, Gourry never had a problem ensuring that he showed up on time for food. Actually, more often than not Gourry found himself at the table early. Just like today. Usually one or two parishioners would also join the three of them at the, but not on this particular night. As such the table meant to seat ten or more felt empty with just three places set. Finally, just as dinner was set to commence, Eruk sat down at the head of the table.

Gourry looked around, Sylphiel was running late again. She'd been late more often when he had first shown up, but more recently she seemed to be considerably more punctual. He looked to the stairs and then to Eruk, wondering when she might show up. At that moment Sylphiel descended the staircase and made her way over to sit next to Gourry. Uneasily he turned to his side, she'd always sat across the table at her fathers' right hand. Now Gourry found himself wedged between the two of them.

Warily Gourry looked to her father, but got an approving nod in return. Quietly he allowed himself to expel the breath he'd been holding. He was grateful, that could have made things uncomfortable. A servant woman came from the kitchen, this time holding a single plate and a bottle of wine. Expertly she removed the covers from the trays that she had already previous set on the table, presenting each with a flourish that was wasted on the three of them.

Gourry's eyes widened, Eruk knew how to eat. He smiled and gave a childish laugh, "Thank you." He said as the servant filled his cup to the brim with the maroon liquid. Just as quickly the three of them started eating.

Eruk tried to catch up on the days events, "So, what were you two up to today?"

Sylphiel smiled, "I took Gourry-sama see Flagoon."

Her father nodded and Gourry's smile quirked as he turned to look her over, she'd been calling him Gourry-_sama_ since she'd kissed him. He looked to Eruk to see if he noticed anything amiss but he smiled and nodded unconcerned. If anything he seemed to be in better spirits than usual despite the seating arrangement.

"So, what did you think?"

The question caught Gourry off guard due to his introspection so he scrambled to answer, "Ummm… unhhh…." He started off floundering, "It was big?" He hoped that it would be enough of an answer.

"Yes, it's likely to be the biggest tree any of us will ever see." Eruk nodded sagely giving Gourry a sigh of relief.

The conversation died off quickly which was not unusual. Often Gourry found himself struggling for conversation with the older man, and he felt Eruk had the same feelings. Still, it was worth the effort. Occasionally Gourry would notice a quick glance in his direction by Sylphiel but whenever he tried to catch her eyes wandering on him the only thing he saw on her face was a blush.

Finally fed, Sylphiel was first to leave the table, and next Gourry.

"Hold on a moment if you would please?" Eruk interrupted just as Gourry was getting to his feet.

"Hummm?"

"I am not sure what you make of my daughter…" Eruk started out in all seriousness. "But it seems she has become quite enamored with you."

Gourry nodded, it was hard not to notice, especially with the memory of the kiss digging so deeply in his mind.

"I just want you to know, you could do a lot worse than to choose Sylphiel." Eruk sighed, "But please," Eruk stopped, his voice dropping, "just don't make her cry. Please."

"I-- I won't." Gourry swallowed, his throat felt tight.

"All right then, sleep well." The demeanor he was used to from the man was back.

"You too." And with that Gourry ascended the stairs, his feet carrying heavily as he climbed. Continuing down the hallway he paused momentarily as he passed Sylphiel's room. He took a moment to watch the door and listen for any movement inside. Sylphiel hadn't said anything about the kiss since it had happened. Even when he'd come right out and asked her about it she had diverted the question, shyly turning her face to the side, not able to meet his gaze. It was completely in contrast to the assertive and somewhat troublesome girl he had come to know during his time in Sairaag.

At first she had treated him as an annoyance and as time went on, after he'd traveled with her through the Miasma forest, he felt she saw him as more of an equal. But now… he wondered… Sighing he walked the rest of the way to his room. Getting inside he found the lamps were already lit. Purposefully he un-strapped his sword and placed it just between the night stand and the bed. It was the quickest spot to withdraw it from if someone where to come in while he slept. His plate mail was carefully hung on a nearby chair to support its weight without toppling and his shirt and boots were next to go.

****Knock** **Knock****

Gourry turned quickly at the sound, walking to the door and carefully opening it only wide enough to fit through an uncurled hand. "Sylphiel?"

"Can I come in for a moment?" She asked, not looking at his face.

"Yeah, sure." Gourry stepped away from the door allowing it to open further. Momentarily he worried about his sate of undress but berated himself, he wasn't too bad off. It was just the thought of how Eruk might react should he come by to find his daughter cavorting with a shirtless Swordsman of Light that dissuaded him.

"I--" She began immediately, sitting down, "I'm sorry about today." Her voice was low, forcing Gourry to move closer, sitting down next to her on the bed.

"About what?" He asked despite his suspicions.

"About everything today, under Flagoon… the kiss." He could hear her swallow hard even next to her. No matter how upset she seemed, her blush even burned on her ears.

"Don't worry about it." Gourry replied confidently, wanting to comfort Sylphiel and glad to have a confrontation out the way, "I'm sure it was nothing."

"No!" Sylphiel interrupted suddenly, "It wasn't nothing… it was just--" She sighed, "Not the right time." She cursed under her breath, kicking her feet lightly against the wooden planks on the floor.

"Oh." Gourry responded intelligently, wondering anew exactly where Sylphiel had been leading things.

"There is something we need to talk about." Finally she turned from the floor to meet his gaze, her smile in full bloom, "But it's still not the right time. Do you think we could talk tomorrow afternoon sometime, out on the hillside?" She finished with a hopeful smile.

"Yeah, but why not right now?" Gourry looked around for emphasis, "Is there some reason we can't-"

Sylphiel turned and hugged him tightly, "Just… tomorrow, okay?"

Gourry brought an arm around her back as a natural reaction, holding her tight against him, feeling her warmth, "Okay, tomorrow."

Sylphiel nodded into the hug before pulling away. "Sleep well Gourry-sama." Timidly she leaned forward and gave him a short kiss, this time on the cheek, before walking out the door. Leaving Gourry touching the side of his face unbelieving as he watched her go.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

Gourry sat on the hillside waiting. He had been there since he had finished his patrol along the nearest edge of the Miasma forest. Just like his previous patrols, he hadn't seen anything. He was sure that his job in Sairaag was almost complete. The number of lesser Demons in the forest had dropped significantly, after he had started killing them apparently it had scared many more of them off. There hadn't been any sightings, in over a week. That was unusual even during good times. He also noticed that the oppressive air surrounding the forest had become more tolerable, though it was never lacking.

"Gourry-sama?"

The sudden calling of his name snapped him out of his reprieve. "Oh, there you are." He called back, leaning backward onto his palms and turning his head as Sylphiel approached his spot. He looked around, the tall grass covered the hillside and it glowed amber in the afternoon sun, dancing from just the slightest of winds. He looked up momentarily into the above branches of the tree, it was the closest one to Eruk's home. Above there were tiny notches carved into the bark, he had chosen to sit next to it not only to give himself something to lean against but also because he figured it would help Sylphiel pick him out.

"Hey." She sat down next to him with a smile, "How'd things go today?"

"Everything went good. Nothing out of the ordinary."

"That's good."

"So… what did you need to talk about?"

Suddenly the same Sylphiel from the night before was there, her eyes just as surely unable to meet his. "I-- well… we can talk about that in a minute."

Gourry leaned back fully on his palms, "Okay." For the moment Gourry was content to just sit and watch the blowing grass and look out over the city below. The hill offered the perfect vantage point for such activities.

"Gourry-sama… how do you feel about me?"

"How do I?" Gourry stopped himself from any automatic answers, thinking about the day previous, the kisses. He'd been unable to push them from his mind the night before when it had been time to sleep. "What do you mean?" He asked, hoping she would give some kind of clarification on where she was heading with the line of questioning.

"I was just wondering if maybe… you felt something for me?" He watched her carefully, she was pulling the tip of the glove off her finger tip then pulling it back on, back and fourth.

"Hummmm…" He wasn't really sure what he felt. To be forced to put a name to it made him feel a little pressed. "I like you, at least I like being with you." He answered truthfully. That was as much as he knew for himself. Truth be told, it was the only thing he could think of that might give him reason to stay in Sairaag after the incidents in the Miasma forest were resolved.

"Gourry-sama… I like you too." In response Sylphiel turned fully away, starring off toward the city.

"Really?" Gourry asked, his eyes wide at the admission.

"Really." Sylphiel sighed, now able to turn to face him. Tears were beginning to pool in the corner of her eyes, "But… I'm not good enough for you."

"Why?" Gourry felt himself nearly shout on reflex, "What would make you think that?" Gourry hadn't had much experience with girls but it seemed like a strange thing to come out and say.

"You wouldn't understand." Hesitantly she wiped the tears from her eyes, "You don't understand me, or Sairaag, or even the legend of the battle against Zanaffar." She smiled at the last bit. No one else in the city would have ever said that to his face, he was too revered but she knew enough about him from their time together to realize he had a deficit when it came to any long term memory.

"Then tell me." He demanded firmly.

Sylphiel let out a shaking breath, thankful that she had stopped crying. "Remember the story of the fight against Zanaffar Gourry-sama." She didn't ask it as a question, just to set the mood. She had decided to start from the beginning to make things more simplistic.

"Yeah… I think so. About how my ancestor defeated Zanaffar with the sword of light." He'd been reminded of the legend enough since he had started living in Sairaag to remember the bulk of it.

"Yes… and after the battle he planted Flagoon in the center of Sairaag to absorb the miasma and purify the city." She decided to reiterate the important part.

He nodded, "I remember all of that." He responded trying not to sound too proud of himself.

"But did anyone tell you where the seed for the tree came from?" Sylphiel asked, careful to bring the question across clearly.

"No." Gourry answered earnestly, "Did they buy it somewhere in town or something like that?" He scratched his head, trying to figure out the importance of Sylphiel's question.

"No…" She shook her head, a smile on her lips despite the seriousness of the situation. "Flagoon, the Holy Tree was a product of the union of the Swordsman of Light and the great Shrine Maiden of Sairaag."

"So they made it together?" He answered quickly.

"It was a product of their _love_ Gourry-sama."

"Oh."

The undertones were obviously lost on him, so Sylphiel decided to give it another try, "That tree," She pointed out in the distance to Flagoon, "Was created from the union of the two of them as lovers." Immediately she felt the heat return to her cheeks.

"Oh." This time he seemed to get the point and it brought a blush to his own face. He looked the tree up and down, it didn't really explain how they made it, but he figured that wasn't the point so didn't press the issue.

"Gourry-sama, before I am worthy of your love I have to become a Shrine Maiden." She said sharply, again tears threatening her peripheral.

"Why? I don't understand?" His question came just as quickly.

"When I was newly born, the oracle of the shrine here in Sairaag saw a glimpse of the future." Sylphiel began carefully, simultaneously not sure how much she should reveal or how to phrase it to make Gourry understand, "She saw the city destroyed just as it had been with Zanaffar and she prophesized that the same cycle would repeat itself. She foresaw that the only way to stop the city from disappearing forever, would be for the Swordsman of Light to once again join with a Shrine Maiden of Sairaag to save the city."

Sylphiel fought a bitter smile quirking at the edge of her mouth. The inside of her mouth felt metallic to admit the prophecy, something she had fought against her whole life. She forced her eyes open amidst the tears, looking out over the city, there was no way it would be destroyed… But the prophecy forecast even darker visions should she fail to act after it would be destroyed… It all seemed so impossible. But here in front of her, this man she had started to feel for, he was their salvation. Suddenly it didn't seem so bad to submit to the fate that she had been fighting.

"You… me…" His eyes widened at the implications. "And the city still gets destroyed?"

"Not right now silly." She answered slightly exasperated, "But… I need to start my training Gourry-sama, and you… you're destined to leave here, at least for now. I will not be allowed any visitors while I undergo the preparations to become a shrine maiden. And someday… I hope you return." No more tears fell from her eyes, it was in the hands of the gods now. That was all she could hope for, to have him come back someday after she finished her training, and to hope it was before the city was destroyed. She shuddered at the thought, glad that she had not revealed to him that it was in fact her that had prophesized and saw the destruction of the city first hand.

"And what if I never come back." He felt himself compelled to ask, his mind reeling at the sudden responsibility, the revealing of the future, whether set in stone or not.

"Then I will keep waiting, no matter what." She responded, suddenly feeling her confidence and determination grow. "And I will pray every day for your return."

Gourry quirked a bitter smile, wondering if the events in Sairaag hadn't been coordinated, everything from the start leading him to this point in life. When he thought about it though, it didn't really matter. Not if the final decision would be left up to him. He looked over Sylphiel, her cheeks were streaked with tears but she was still determined. He wondered if he could stay away from Sairaag perpetually. If she would really wait for him forever. Could he deal with himself if he ruined her life, if he destroyed the city. He was the Swordsman of Light now, was this really the fate and responsibility he had taken upon himself when he had chosen to take the sword.

"I can try to come back someday." He promised at length. Feeling compelled he reached out and took Sylphiel into a new hug, feeling her clutch tightly against his chest.

"And I will wait for you… forever."

**Chapter 11**

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

Again Lina could feel Gourry's eyes burning into her back. She turned to Amelia, apparently the princess didn't have the same problem. Either that or she was much better at ignoring it. She gave Amelia's hand a little re-assuring squeeze, not wanting her to feel put off just before she disentangled her hand from the princess'. Amelia didn't seem upset, or at least her smile didn't waver.

Lina continued walking for a few moments before turning around, she didn't want to see the hurt look in Gourry's eyes form the hand holding but she didn't have much choice. Amelia had continued to gravitate toward her side, her hand toward Lina's hand all throughout the day no matter how many times she pulled away. Lina sighed, she figured it must have been because she didn't have the heart to pull away as coldly as she would have needed to in order to dissuade the princess. All the same, she didn't want to put Gourry through that kind of torture.

They had put a day and half between themselves and the previous city and were on their way toward their next goal, thought that had not been decided in full yet. Zephillia, Saillune… Sairaag. Last Lina heard Sylphiel had gone back to Sairaag after her stint in Saillune, it had to be that Gourry knew that. Still, they were all valid options at the moment. Lina slowed, she had been on the lookout for a good camping spot for the last couple hours. The trio still had some daylight left to burn but Lina had an ulterior motive. "That'll do." Lina said aloud, pointing to the woods. Faintly a waterfall could be heard in the distance and that was enough of a lure to make the spot appealing to Lina for camping.

"For our camp site for tonight." Lina again pointed to the forest, "There's a waterfall over there, and where there is water there are fish." Lina accentuated the point by rubbing her stomach and licking her lips, garnering her an odd look from Amelia.

"Isn't it a little early to break for camp?" Amelia asked, curious as to Lina's sudden suggestion.

"No… no! Of course not. Not when there are fish to catch and a river to relax in."

Gourry scratched his head, "Okay, that makes sense."

Lina lead the way off the road and into the forest. Sure enough it wasn't long at all before the three of them hit a decent sized river leading to a waterfall. The water was crystal clear and despite its width it wasn't all that deep. Still, if they wanted to bathe Lina had faith that the basin at the bottom of the water fall would prove deep enough.

"That looks like a good spot." Amelia called out, pointing across the river to a barren spot on the opposite bank.

Lina looked around for a moment before confirming with a nod. Gourry trudged through the water, the deepest being up to his knees as he made his way to the camp site. Lina leapt between some of the larger rocks in the river, and Amelia walked through the water but tired to stick to the more shallow areas with less of a current. Lina immediately started pitching her tent a short distance from the river. Gourry did likewise but put more distance between himself and Lina than usual, which left Amelia enough space to pitch a tent between the two of them. Amelia wasn't sure about the point of it though, she knew she would be sleeping in a different tent that night.

Lina again noticed Gourry stopping, watching her and Amelia. When their eyes met he went back to working on his tent as if nothing had come up. The tension was there just as it had been all day, and all the previous day. And it was growing. Lina sighed, driving a stake into the ground at the corner of her tent. Things were coming to a head whether she wanted them to or not.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

"Hey Gourry, I need your help over here." Lina called out from the edge of the woods. Darkness had descended on the group and Lina wanted some assistance with the firewood, "Hold down the fort, okay Amelia?" Amelia looked in her direction momentarily before going back to watching the fire.

Gourry got up slowly and walked to meet Lina at the edge of the woods. "I just need some help carrying some firewood." She explained as they both started to head away from camp.

"Not a problem." Gourry replied, scooping down to pick up a few twigs at his feet.

"No, not here. I already got a pile we need to bring back." Lina started walking down the trail with Gourry in tow. They continued to walk for some time, out of range of the sound of the waterfall. Deeper into the woods before finally coming to a small cache of firewood that had been neatly stacked in the middle of the pathway.

"Gourry…" Lina intoned as Gourry started stacking the firewood in his arms.

"What?"

"Stop for a second would ya?"

"Hummm?" Gourry stood upright. It was dark in the woods and he could hardly make out Lina's features.

"I-- Gourry… this is hard." She mumbled to herself. "Tomorrow we'll be getting to the city… if we keep going south we'll end up in Saillune, if we go west… Sairaag…" Lina swallowed hard, "I want _you_ to go to Sairaag…"

"Why?" Gourry answered with a start, "I'm your protector."

"I don't deserve that, okay!" Lina shouted, angry at herself more than him. "You shouldn't waste your life hanging around with some flat chested little girl. You should go to Sairaag, or Elmekia, or somewhere were you have some kind of future." Lina trailed off, flush and breathing heavily. She cursed herself for having worked herself up so much before hand, she was having a hard time maintaining any composure.

"But… Lina-"

"No, you already know there's nothing here for you anymore. Nothing… between us." Lina let the last part out as almost a gasp.

"There was though, something between us…. I felt it." Gourry defended, finally his voice starting to crack.

"Yeah… there was." Lina said wistfully.

"It was supposed to be you and me…. Amelia and Zel…. How--"

"It just wasn't meant to be…" Lina took a step forward, her face pressing against Gourry's chest.

"Then what was?" Gourry asked, his throat tight.

"You… Sylphiel…" Lina managed out between shaky breaths.

Gourry closed his eyes tightly, fighting back the tears. Remembering again his first trip to Sairaag. The first kiss he and Sylphiel had shared, the feeling afterward…. "No, I want to be with you." The memory still hurt too much, "Even if we can never be more than just friends."

Lina thudded her fists against his chest, "You dummy, you can't do that. I saw how you were looking at me and Amelia today, it was hurting you… and I can't have you hurting like that."

"And what about Zel?" Gourry said, grasping at whatever he could to keep hope glimmering.

"Zel… well, he's tougher than he looks." Lina said, half-laughing and half-crying at the little joke. "Besides, he probably already had everything figured out before I even knew what was going on."

Gourry nodded, that had pretty much been the case, or at least he accepted what was going to happen. It was Gourry that had denied it and delayed his own actions. "So, that's it then." Gourry said with finality. "All the times we've traveled together, saved each other, all of those lonely nights traveling together, keeping each other company-"

"You were a good friend and always there for me." Lina cut him off, afraid of him finishing on a bitter note that might haunt her and himself. "And hopefully I can be there for you too."

"Then why aren't you there for me now." Gourry sobbed, the emotions finally getting the best of him.

"I am Gourry… that's why I'm telling you to go." Finally Lina couldn't hold it inside any more, crying openly and puling herself tightly against his chest, "Please… I can't stand to hurt you any more than I already have."

Gourry pulled away abruptly and for a moment Lina thought that he might be going to run, but instead he reached out and gently rubbed her head. "You know, I've had a good feeling about you since the first day I met you…" He trailed off, leaving Lina anticipating his next words more than anything, but instead of continuing he reached down and piled the firewood in his arms and started heading back to camp.

Quickly she ran around to the front of him, tears falling from her eyes, almost knocking him off balance she reached up on her tippy toes and planted a kiss on his cheek. "I'm sorry." She said simply.

Despite the lack of light she still made out his smile. That same smile she'd always dreamed about, "I know… so am I." And the two of them traveled back to camp side by side.

Lina cast a lighting spell to help guide them back to camp and was immediately glad she did, she was unsure if the two of them would have been able to find the camp again without it. Simultaneous with their walking into the clearing, Amelia spoke up, "You two were sure gone a long time." She worried aloud. Lina shot her a dirty look in response but softened it, she had no clue what had happened on.

"Sorry about that, we just got a little lost."

"Yeah, lost." Gourry agreed, still distant after their conversation.

"Oh." Amelia kept quiet, whatever had happened the two of them didn't seem to want to talk about it. She sat back more fully against a log she had dragged around a makeshift fire pit, "So, what's the plan for tomorrow?" She asked innocently enough.

Gourry and Lina froze momentarily before Gourry sat down heavily, "I guess I'm going to Sairaag." Gourry mumbled, still distant.

"What was that?" Amelia had heard well enough but it hadn't made sense.

"Gourry has things to do in Sairaag, and the two of us are going to continue onto Saillune."

"Oh." Amelia looked between Lina and Gourry. It had finally happened. She felt her eyes threaten tears, they were officially over. "Oh… I'm so sorry."

Gourry cut off her mourning, feeling himself snap out of his funk, "It's okay Amelia, I'll be fine." He insisted, waving his hands in front of himself to ward off her feelings.

"I know…" Amelia wiped a tear from the corner of her eye, "It's just so sad…" She finished with a wail turning again to look at the fire.

Gourry looked between Lina and Amelia, then back to Lina, Lina shrugged and Gourry shrugged in response. "Don't worry about me Amelia, you've got Lina to worry about now." He finished drooping his head in her direction, immediately bringing a stillness to the princess.

Amelia looked up from the fire to Lina, seeing the way the light of the fire played across her features and also the look in her eyes. It was strong again, stronger than it had been in a long time. She felt the confidence that it usually lent her return, things were going to be okay. Amelia managed a few more sniffles then gave a meaningful nod in Gourry's direction before scooting over to Lina who was sitting on top of the log.

Lina reached down and ruffled Amelia's hair, "It'll be fine…"

Amelia turned up to catch her gaze, and the connection was back just as it had been nights previous in the Inn. She felt that lightness in her chest, that warm feeling sweep over her, different than she had ever felt with Zelgadiss, stronger, more pure… mutual for once in her life.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

Closing her eyes, Lina remembered back to when she had first met Gourry Gabriev. She laughed, she had always been a schemer, always with some plan or motive, at least in the long run. But this man had broken all of that, not in her wildest dreams would she have imagined a man like him would have played such a critical part in her life. Protector, guardian, and he could have been so much more.

Lina wiped the corners of her eyes, preempting any tears, "So-- this is it?"

Gourry swallowed hard, shaking his head, "Y-yeah, it is."

"I'm gonna miss you." Lina stammered, biting her lip to keep the emotions inside.

"Me too…" Achingly he reached out and embraced Lina who fell into the hug, gripping back with all the might in her little body.

"Goodbye…" Lina squeaked out between jagged breaths.

"Goodbye Lina…" And with that he pulled away and headed off on his own toward Sairaag.

"Goodbye Gourry-san…" Amelia muttered, just above a whisper.

Lina watched for a few moments until Gourry rounded a far away turn and went out of her field of vision. Eventually Amelia found her way over to Lina and put a comforting arm over her shoulder, "Are you okay?"

"No." Lina laughed, "But I'll get better." She forced a smile though she threatened tears. Suddenly she was kissing Amelia on the lips and bracing her behind her back, dipping the lower girl.

Amelia felt herself flush, "Did that help?" She ventured.

"A little." Lina admitted after a moment. "But I still think I'm going to miss the big Jelly Fish."

"We'll see him in six months, won't we?" Amelia asked, reminding Lina of their promise to Zelgadiss.

"Yeah, we will." Again Lina looked down the road, thinking of her guardian. She had been convinced for so long that he was the one for her. And she knew that he had felt the same for her. But it just never worked out, and eventually she realized… it was all in their heads. No matter how much they tried to make it work, to make things real… It wouldn't matter, because when it came down to it, they were just good friends, almost family, and though it killed her to do it to him, she had to let him go.

Lina wiped away a stray tear that had made it through her defenses, "Well then, come on, we've still got a few days before we get to Saillune then, don't we?" Lina picked up her pace, starting a jog down the road, leaving Amelia no choice but to follow her.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

The duo pressed on past dusk before they finally found an Inn. Not within a city but freestanding along the side of the roadway. As luck would have it they were also fortunate enough to have a vacancy left of the night. Lina immediately paid the woman working the counter and the two of them made their way up the stairs to their room for the night.

Lina and Amelia entered the room and immediately Lina turned and leaned with her back against the door, casually reaching down and locking it while looking Amelia in the eye. "Amelia…" Lina started softly, taking a step toward the princess.

"Ummm, yeah?" Amelia asked, taking a step backward, noticing the predatory look in Lina's eyes.

"I've done some thinking and I've come to realize something…" Lina let the smirk come to her features and purposefully tried to put a swagger in her hips as she followed the princess who was backpedaling her way to the bed.

"What was tha-!" Amelia suddenly flailed out an arm, trying to catch anything. Quickly Lina covered the few steps of distance between the two of them but failed to make it in time. The boards in the floor creaked as Amelia fell on her posterior.

"Owww…" Amelia moaned, reaching down to her butt and looking up at Lina and the smile on her face.

"Amelia?" Lina asked, hardly keeping from laughing and reaching out a hand for her friend.

Amelia took the hand quickly as Lina helped her to her feet, "Hummm?"

Lina continued pulling Amelia even after she got to her feet, wrapping her in a tight embrace, "You really are a goof, and… I love you."

Amelia's eyes went wide, "You do…" She let out as a squeak

"Yup."

"I-- I love you too! I love you with all my heart Lina!" Amelia made the hug almost painful to receive but Lina rode it out, trying to return it in kind just shy of giving pain.

"I'm so sorry for the way I've acted…" Lina started out.

Amelia picked up the thought, "Me too, after that first night I wasn't sure, I was so confused Lina… I thought I'd been untrue to myself, lying to you. I would have never done that if I hadn't loved you and that's why… that's why I couldn't bear to see you after that."

Lina swallowed hard, "I'm sorry I couldn't say it sooner. I just-- I was confused."

"I know." Amelia held her tighter, the outside world vanished and she imagined the two of them standing atop a pedestal, higher than the world, in the only beam of light against an endless darkness. It was just like she always imagined love would be. "Finally…." Amelia muttered to herself, feeling a weight lift off her heart that had been held there for years.

Slowly the two of them made their way to the bed, tumbling atop it as one mass. It was slower this time, not just lust. Lina, with her eyes closed slowly explored her lovers body, gently caressing her all over, causing her to shiver from the gentle touch. In return Amelia peppered light kisses over Lina, her face, trailing down along her jaw line.

They embraced again, rolling onto the bed properly and shedding clothes along the way, not stopping until they were both naked. "No rushing this time…" Lina murmured out, closing the gap between them with a kiss. Amelia smiled into the kiss, no, there would be no rushing, this was prefect, everything Amelia had ever dreamed it would be, and it had only just begun.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

Gourry shifted between his feet, waiting nervously after he had knocked on the door. He looked over the building, fairly sizeable, but through the windows it was empty.

"Who is it?" Came the voice from inside.

"It's me… Gourry." He added after a moment, trying not to be presumptuous.

He waited a moment longer, hearing a commotion inside the building. Finally he heard the telltale sound of metal sliding against metal as the latch for the door was drawn open. The door itself opened inward smoothly, gliding on well-oiled bearings.

"Gourry…"

"It's been a while Sylphiel…" He managed a smile but felt the tears threaten yet again as they had frequently the last two days.

Gourry didn't have to say a word more, "By the Gods… Gourry, what happened?" Then seeing that if anything the question caused his upturned lip to quiver even more she asked the question she dreaded, "Lina… is she…?" The shrine maiden gulped, instantly remembering with crystal clarity her own hands covered in Lina's blood so deep under Flagoon so long ago.

"No." Gourry shook his head solidly, "It's just, she's moved on… without me." He added the last bit just above a whisper.

Sylphiel looked Gourry up and down before stepping in and embracing the swordsman. Inadvertently he found himself comparing the embrace to Lina's final embrace. It was completely different. Sylphiel was so much taller but her touch much more delicate.

"You can stay here if you'd like…" She offered, wondering and hoping that was his intention all along.

Gourry held her tighter, feeling the tears fall from his eyes, "You know… I think I'd like that."

Sylphiel nodded against his shoulder and pulled back, "Well, come on in." She forced a smile to her face through the tears.

He managed a smile in return but turned back to look back the way he came, at the road that he had taken to get there, winding down the hillside and into the crater city of Sairaag. It was beautiful outside, the sun was shining and the foliage all around Sylphiel's home was bright green. He let out a sigh and strode through the door purposefully, taking a moment to close it fully behind himself.

/\/\||/\/\-=End of Chapter 11=-/\/\||/\/\


	12. Chapter 12

Butterflies, Dominoes, and Causality

Conclusion - Chapter 12 of 12

A Hentai Slayers Fanfic by RVincent

.com

PLEASE READ - I do not own 'The Slayers' and have no relation or ties to those people that do own the series, aside from the various DVDs and VHS tapes that I have purchased over the years. In conjunction with this statement I further decree that I am not claiming ownership, nor am I making any money off this fan work. No copyright infringement is meant, I am writing this as an expression of my fandom. Furthermore, this fanfic will contain some blood (not much) and some female x female sexual encounters and is therefore meant for adults only. If you are under 18 years of age please go back now and ignore ever reading this preface. For those other people that intend to stay I can only hope you enjoy reading this.

This is the final chapter of a multi-chapter fanfic, reading previous chapters is necessary to understand what is going on in the storyline (Yes, despite the age restrictions there is a story line). Please visit the Slayers Hentai Fanfiction Archive (.com) to read previous chapters.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

Six Months Later

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

Shielding her eyes Lina glanced upward. The sun was just coming down its apex in the sky, approaching the peak of the mountain they were fast approaching. If they hurried they would make it by nightfall. "Come on princess, pick up the pace." Lina called out playfully, putting a little jump in her step and causing the girl behind her to do the same.

"You think we'll make it there before dark." Amelia asked echoing Lina's thoughts.

"If we hurry." Lina replied back. The apprehension Lina was feeling was nowhere near enough to wipe the smile from her face. Despite everything that happened, she was looking forward to seeing Gourry and Zelgadiss again. She looked back at Amelia, wondering how things had changed for them. Things had changed plenty for her. The outfit she was wearing was the most superficial of the changes. But it was a consequence of her new occupation, Court Sorcerer and Body Guard of the Princess of Saillune.

It wasn't exactly Man and Wife but it did give her and Amelia an excuse to be around each other day and night. Phil for his part seemed to be doing his best to ignore any impure aspects of their relationship and still somehow seem happy whenever he saw the two of them together. As always he doted on his daughter incessantly.

Lina remembered the funny feeling she'd had when she realized she was essentially filling Gourry's role in her relationship with Amelia. She was the protector, the guardian. She wondered if Gourry would find the same bit of humor or if he would only see sadness in the comparison. She would find out soon enough.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

The area was completely changed. What were once overgrown ruins were now uncovered, restored. There were other people too, milling around, some working on the restoration apparently, others moving to and from the ruins to houses that had been erected nearby. Lina and Amelia exchanged puzzled looks.

"What do you think's going on?" Amelia asked looking at a few children wading in a nearby fountain.

"I don't know. Maybe we should try to find Zelgadiss first." Lina nodded, walking up to the first man she saw heading her way, "Hey Mister, do you know where we could find Zelgadiss Greywords?" Lina asked smoothly.

"Hummm… Zelgadiss…" The man put his hand to his chin, Lina took a moment to look him over, the tools hanging from his belt and attire made her guess he was a mason, "He's probably at home right now?"

"Home?" Lina asked, hiding her surprise at Zelgadiss and home being used in the same sentence, "Where's that?"

"It's that building right over there." The man responded, pointing at the only house located among the ruins themselves.

"Oh, thanks." Lina replied, giving a wave and Amelia giving a slight bow before they headed off. It looked to Lina like the camp or whatever it was, was winding down for the night. People were for the most part heading in one direction, toward assorted tents and homes nearby. She was honestly surprised that such structures were built so quickly, especially since there were so few raw materials in the area such as wood.

Zelgadiss' house was a simple structure, one story, Lina guessed from the outside that it had one room, maybe two. A slight pitched roof, chimney, and window gave it the appearance of a full house and not just a temporary living quarters.

"What do you think?" Lina asked her traveling companion, giving her an odd look.

"Does he really live here?" Amelia tried to look through the window but the curtains were drawn.

Lina smiled and knocked twice. A moment later Zelgadiss was taking the place of the door in Lina's field of vision.

"Look who decided to show up." Zelgadiss said with a half-laugh. There wasn't any bitterness to it, he was already trying to rile Lina.

"Hey-ya Zel, how are things going?" Lina responded with a smile.

Zelgadiss looked to Amelia, "Amelia." He intoned with a nod in her direction.

"Zelgadiss." She replied timidly, trying not to shift too much under his gaze.

Lina tried to cut back in, "So, what's the deal with all of these people anyway."

"Oh-" Zelgadiss turned back to Lina, "They're helping." He said with a smile, "Come on inside." He moved to the side out of the doorway and motioned to the two of them.

They both stepped inside, the room itself was just as small as they had expected from the outside. "So, this is where you live." Amelia was quick to fill in the silence.

"Yeah… lately anyway." He added after looking around. A moment later he was sitting at the table. Lina looked him over, his clothes had changed, short sleeves, he wasn't hiding his chimerism like he usually did.

"Spill it Zel, what's going on here?" Lina asked directly, getting to the heart of the matter.

Zelgadiss looked to Amelia before quickly turning away. "I was coming up here every few days to uncover the ruins. Since I had some time before the stars were right I was looking to see if I could find any other useful information here." He stood from his chair and walked over to his stove, continuing as he walked, "I started cleaning the stones, trying to read some of the glyphs." He poured himself some tea and held up the pot eliciting a nod from Amelia and a firm 'no' motion from Lina. "Anyway, after I finished that I started putting the stones where they belonged." Zelgadiss walked back to the table, sitting a cup in front of himself and Amelia.

"Soon enough I was digging out the fountains, the reflecting pools… then people started to show up." Zelgadiss took a drink form his tea, "They wanted to help." He shook his head, "Apparently someone had seen me up here rebuilding and… I guess at one time this place was of some great fame. I mean this was hundreds of years ago, but once I started working on it, all of these other people started coming to help." He looked to Lina and Amelia to gauge their reactions, "Some of them are wood workers, masons, and some of them are just religious pilgrims, but they all help where they can."

Lina was getting the strange feeling that somehow Zelgadiss was all right with the situation so she probed further, "I bet that screws up your plans with all of these people around watching."

Zelgadiss shook his head, "No, not really, they're all good people."

Amelia smiled, surprised to see a reaction out of the chimera.

"Gourry and Sylphiel are here already." Zelgadiss took in their suddenly startled looks with a bit of smug satisfaction. Lina stuttered, trying to say something but Zelgadiss cut here off, "Don't worry, I knew something like this was going to happen." Again his eyes found Amelia's but this time her gaze. "Why don't we just all meet up together tomorrow?"

Lina tried to shake off the sudden guilty feeling, "Sounds good Zel, you okay with that Amelia?"

Amelia shook her head, "Sounds good." She repeated.

Lina stood from the table waving, "Want us to just set up our tent with the others?"

Zelgadiss nodded, "That works, see you two in the morning."

Lina was the first to exit the doorway, Amelia held back a moment longer, "Have a good night Zelgadiss." And with that the two of them were gone.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

"Lina!" The sorceress turned abruptly at the salutation, catching sight of Gourry waving wildly at both her and Amelia.

"Hey!" Lina called back, the two of them making their way over to the swordsman's tent.

"How are you two?" Gourry asked, the smile not faltering from his face.

"Doing pretty good." Lina answered smoothly looking her previous guardian over, "Things are going well for us back in-" Lina stopped abruptly as Sylphiel climbed out of the tent behind Gourry, "Sylphiel!" Lina called out causing the Shrine Maiden to turn and smile before walking towards the three of them.

"How are you doing? What's new with you?" Lina asked once Sylphiel got into earshot but directing the question to both Gourry and Sylphiel.

"Oh, lots." Sylphiel smiled, "First…" She paused, looking to the ground, a blush coming to her features, "Well… me and Gourry-sama were wed." Her words were intentionally light, seemingly worried about infuriating Lina.

Lina masked the flinch well. It was a jealous reflex that she had no right to keep, "That's great!" She managed out sounding sincere despite her own feelings. She admitted to herself that it was good, that Gourry looked happy, but it was still a blow to her ego that things had turned around that fast, so it was a few steps shy of 'great'.

"And… well…" Sylphiel looked down at the ground, a blush on her cheeks, "A little Gourry is going to be on the way soon enough."

Lina was forced to bit her tongue to keep her expression.

"I'm going to be a daddy." Gourry smiled, putting his hand to the back of his head.

Lina looked over Sylphiel's body, it was visible, maybe, if she really looked for the bump it was there. For things to have happened so fast… Lina shook her head, "I'm happy for the two of you." She smiled back at Gourry, "Congratulations." She directed at Sylphiel.

"Thank you." Sylphiel managed to pull her gaze from the dirt to meet Lina's smile. Lina hoped her own smile wasn't as transparent as it felt.

"We've been working to rebuild Sairaag too." Gourry chimed in.

"Oh yes, Gourry-sama has been indispensable in the rebuilding efforts, he's turned out to be quite the carpenter." Sylphiel added surprising both Amelia and Lina.

"So, what's the deal with the outfit?" Gourry asked, directing the question at Lina.

Lina looked down ready to explain as Amelia took the opportunity to drop herself in the conversation. "That's the uniform of the personal body guard of the princess." Amelia answered smugly, knowing how much of a fuss Lina had with regards to the outfit at times. Honestly Lina felt fairly comfortable in the attire, the color scheme had been designed for men but it still had a flare to it, with splotches of red at Lina's request. It also helped that the fabric was woven together with enchantments and resisted most anything short of a full scale fireball. The fact that the outfit always fit its wearer snugly… even though it had been designed for a man it still clung tightly to her chest. That had taken the most getting used to.

"It looks good on you Lina-san." Sylphiel offered, earning her another smile in response.

"Well, it's the outfit I wear to protect my princess." Lina responded with sidelong glance at the princess, earning a blush.

"Wait, so now you're Amelia's protector?" Gourry asked, needing the clarification.

Lina nodded, "Yeah, I guess so, but let's face it, how much protection does she need?"

Gourry smiled wide, "You'd be surprised. That's how I felt with you and you managed to prove me wrong time and time again."

Lina stuck out her tongue, "Whatever." The four of them shared a brief burst of laughter over the exchange. "I'm also the court sorcerer. When I'm not out with the Princess I'm helping to train the troops."

"Sounds important." Gourry offered.

"So how do you like living in Saillune?" Sylphiel asked, knowing from experience what the city was like.

"It's nice…" Lina responded thinking about it deeply for the first time. Honestly she'd hardly seen much of the city itself in her last few months. She'd mostly stuck to the castle and even there she'd mostly stayed in Amelia's bedroom.

"I'm glad you like it." Sylphiel answered back, "The two of us will have to visit."

Amelia answered back, "You're both welcome at the palace any time."

"Thank you Princess Amelia." Sylphiel answered formally with a slight bow, earning her a curtsey in return.

"I guess we'll see you both in the morning then?" Lina asked, conflicted at wanting to talk more with the two of them and wanting to get away before they struck a nerve somehow.

"See you then." Gourry nodded to the both of them. With a smile both Lina and Amelia left, off to find a secluded place for the night.

()()**()()**()()O0o.o0O()()**()()**()()

It felt like forever before Lina opened her eyes again but it was still as deep and dark in the tent as it had been before. Just the faintest of moonlight granting illumination to the scenery around her. Lina sighed, she was no closer to sleep than when she had laid down, and that felt like hours ago. She rolled onto her side, Amelia seemed to be completely out of it. Steadily Lina's eyes adjusted as she watched the princess sleep. Faint details came into perspective. Shadows along her face, the raise and fall of her naked chest, her blanket having worked its way lower on her body, resting just above her navel.

Timidly Lina slid herself over slightly, her body pressed against Amelia's, and laid her hand across her lovers stomach. A moment later she took a nipple in her mouth. She couldn't see in the darkness but she would have bet money on Amelia bearing a smile form the action, though not at all awakened from it. It was something she'd discovered early enough in their sexual relationship. Amelia sighed in her sleep, if anything the act of sucking Amelia's nipple helped the princess sleep, and for her… unless she was already feeling in the mood, helped calm and sooth her nerves.

As much as she hated to admit it to herself, it was Gourry and thoughts of him with Sylphiel that were conspiring against her getting a good nights sleep. That and the fact that she was no longer used to sleeping on the ground. Still, it was Gourry on her mind at the moment. Thinking of her last tearful farewell.

She had given up on Gourry, set him free, and she was happy with Amelia. So why was it that she was bothered so much now by seeing him with Sylphiel. And that she was … pregnant. The thought had shot through Lina like ice. And to see the bulge, the physical evidence. Lina had been intimate with Amelia enough times, but never had either of them been with a man, as such there were no children in either of their near futures. At least not without some unknown spell.

Did she want children? Or did she just want a one-night stand to be able to say that she had been with a man.

… Was it Amelia that Lina wanted? The thought made her swallow the spittle in her mouth as she sucked on the princess' nipple. Lina felt in love. At least what she felt was love, whatever it was it was powerful. But it was still so new, fragile….

Phil seemed to be ignoring for the most part the true depths of their relationship.

True conflict for the two of them was few and far between. Aside from her falling out with Gourry their relationship had not had to survive any real hardships. It could just be lust, Amelia had been her first. They had known each other long enough to know which buttons not to push and which habits were so ingrained in each other that points of contention were rare indeed.

But there had been one memorable moment, shortly after they had both arrived back in Saillune, with thoughts of Gourry still on her mind, Lina had found herself in a depressive funk, and tried hard to hide it from Amelia.

Lina's temper had been short, or more succinctly, shorter than usual. Amelia hadn't known, didn't have much of a clue that anything had been amiss. She'd started talking to Lina innocently enough, trying to get a laugh out of the sorceress by asking which one of them would wear the dress at the wedding.

Lina went on the attack. She had started off slow and building. The thoughts were already there, she'd dwelt on them in her head for days. Rhetorically she'd asked if it would make a difference. If Amelia wore the dress would she still hold Lina as if she were a woman? Hold her when she was scared. Would she crush the spiders that came out from beneath the beds? Lina had firmly stated that she was a woman, and that Amelia was a woman. And that neither of them could be the man that the other needed.

It was depressing but Lina had to get it off her chest. Instead of sadness though, Amelia had met her argument with anger. Pushing Lina further away. They hadn't talked to each other for days. It was just like after their first time, neither knew what to say, what the other wanted to hear. And… Lina thought bitterly… it was sex that once again brought them back together. When Amelia was beneath her, loving her… there was nothing else that mattered.

She cut herself short, feeling Amelia stirring under her arm. Lina wondered if she had been too rough with Amelia's nipple. Amelia pulled away slightly and rolled onto her own side, facing face to face with Lina.

The words from Amelia were weak but no less emotional, "I love you." The kiss made Lina smile and just like that Amelia was again asleep.

Lina struggled to find her emotional footing again. It really was that easy. Amelia loved her, and it was so easy to love her back. The jealously she had felt earlier with Gourry and Sylphiel was those same old feelings welling up again, but not the love, just… the protectiveness, the worry, the longing to have her own relationship with Amelia just as open, and just as cemented as Gourry and Sylphiel's was. She wondered what Amelia would look like with child, that glowing look, the feeling between the two of them. Lina smiled to herself in the dark, she wanted children. It was a surprising revelation but… now that the thought had come to her head, it was true.

Lina cuddled in closer to Amelia, wondering how the princess would react if Lina woke her up and asked her to make a baby with her. The act itself would be impossible but the thought was erotic enough to put Lina in the mood. She stopped herself short. It was love. And… she needed to think about it. Needed to talk it over. But… Lina let out the breath she had been holding, it was love.

....{}[](){][}(}{)[)(]()-/*\......../*\-()(][){)(}[}{]()[]{}....

As Lina and Amelia approached the staircase leading down into the ruins, Lina noticed Amelia fidgeting with her shirt. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know, my nipple feels really tender today. Just one of them…"

Lina noticed Amelia pull the fabric of her shirt slightly away from her left breast. Lina fought to hold back her smile, she'd over-done her suckling slightly but somehow Amelia didn't think to attribute it to her sleeping companion. "That's weird." Lina said at last as they started descending the staircase into the ruins.

Taking a moment Lina looked over the architecture. This had been the second staircase that had been blocked with rubble previously. Now it had been cleaned out in its entirety. Blocks that had been knocked out had been replaced with freshly carved stone. As she reached the bottom Lina looked around, Zelgadiss, Gourry, Sylphiel, they were all here. She pulled her eyes away from Sylphiel's stomach, wondering how she didn't notice it immediately when she had met up with her the day previous.

"Glad the two of you could make it." Zelgadiss called from across the room, causing Lina to walk over to him as Amelia found her way over to Sylphiel and Gourry.

"G'morning Zel." Lina smiled and waved as she approached.

^^^^/\/\/\---([0])---/\/\/\^^^^

"Morning." Zelgadiss replied as she Lina strode up to him. He looked her over, her new outfit, Gourry had already told him about it. Although the temptation was there to ask her again, her still felt a pang of regret over what happened with Amelia and decided that it would be for the best not to bring it up for both of them.

"So, today's your big day." Lina said with a grin.

"Yeah, I guess." Indeed it was, outside everyone that had found their way to the site had gathered together. He'd let out that today something special was going to happen and although he didn't tell anyone exactly what, the people had latched onto the idea. At first he had been bashful, as he had with all the attention they had bestowed upon him, but now… it just brought a smile to his face.

"Well-" Lina paused as if wondering what to say next, "Good luck." She patted her hand on his shoulder before turning off to meet with Gourry and Sylphiel and Amelia.

Zelgadiss turned to look at the archway. The original runes that had adorned its surface had been re-tooled into the masonry. He doubted that they would have any effect on the gateway but it made everything look so new again. And this was a sacred site after all. He'd doubted the claim until people started to come from all corners of the kingdom to live nearby and help him rebuild.

He hadn't the heart at first to tell the sick and injured that he didn't need the help. Then when more able bodied people had arrived he hadn't pushed them away either. Didn't make his selfish motives clear, he'd just allowed them to help. And without ever wanting to, he had found himself directing the efforts. His responsibilities had grown. He'd taken on some powers of a governing body, solving problems between the people living there. Helping to build houses, he'd felt accepted. For once he felt like he belonged.

Things had turned out so much more different than he expected. He never thought he would have any of this. From his early days with Rezo he pictured himself as a man with no real future. Not able to function on his own. A follower, but somehow Lina had given him the courage to free himself. He'd never thanked her for that. Everything else they had been through. Fighting two of the dark lords, even one from another world, more experiences than most people have in a lifetime. He turned to look back at his friends, so much had changed between them as well, and between him and Amelia. But it was comforting in a way, anything could change, everything could change.

Lina chose that moment to break in, "So, what do you want us to do?" She asked a little cockily, though it was to be expected of Lina.

"You guys just wait here, if I'm not back in ten minutes, reel me in." He smiled, pulling at the rope tied around his waist. Lina gave him a downcast look in return, he could tell she wanted a piece of the action. "If everything goes good though, you're up next, okay?"

She smiled in response, "Thanks Zel, don't hog the Claire Bible too long!"

He smiled back at all of his friends, "Okay, here goes." He held his breath as he took a step forward, his friends yelling out behind him, whishing him good luck. No matter how things turned out form here, it had been a wild ride.

*** The End***

Authors Notes:

Holy crap! It's done! This fanfic took approximately two years beginning to end to write. Not constant work, but still. I wrote pretty much the entire fanfic and then I read 'Idiots guide to writing erotic romance' and re-wrote… well, it ended up being three times as long as the original work. So long that I had to break it into chapters for writing which is something I never do. And you know what, it still feels rushed!

The premise for this fanfic is the song "Something to talk about" and that was the title for this fanfic as a work in progress. The original idea for this fanfic was about three sentences, and it grew into this. Impressive? Just that Amelia and Lina pretend to have something going on and fall for each other in the process.

To my ideology here, 'Erotic Romances' usually revolve around the people involved having sex before loving one another, then having to come to an understanding or falling in love after the fact. So that is the formula that I was trying to put into practice here. I also tried to put in more drama than my usual fanfic, tried to put in some more speed bumps and also tried the unusual thing of trying to give everyone some kind of closure.

Okay, this is wearing on, but 95% of this was written before Revolution was aired, thankfully nothing much from that series impacted this one, and I can't tell you what did without making for spoilers but suffice it to say I changed a few very minor things and it all fit. I mean, what really changes at the end of a series of Slayers?

Finally, my e-mail address is located at the top of this fanfic if you would like to get into contact with me. Comments and criticisms are always accepted. Visit my Slayers Hentai Forum which can be found by visiting my webpage in my profile Finally, finally, finally, support Slayers, buy Slayers stuff. Buy the remastered DVD's, buy the novels, buy Revolution when it comes out, the movies, support the series as much as you can!!!!

-RVincent

10118

1178


End file.
